Better Left Unspoken
by PepsiBeth
Summary: Akane has grown up and is finally ready to admit her feelings for Ranma, but something goes wrong...
1. Chapter One

- This is the start of a new series for me, and I'm not sure yet what kind of path it will take - I've got some of the plot figured out, but every time I've done that, it seems to say "Well, I don't want to be written that way" so we'll see. It starts basically right after the last of the Manga. Sorry if Akane seems a bit OOC, but read my notes at the bottom for what I think about it.  
  
- Disclaimer: My good friend Rumiko owns these characters, but only because I sold them to her beforehand. Well, okay, no, I never owned them, I never will own them, I don't make money on them. Visit my website: http://pepsibeth.20megsfree.com to read all my Ranma 1/2 Fanfiction. And please sign my guestbook... It's very lonely.  
  
  
Better Left Unspoken  
  
"It's over!" sobbed Akane to herself as she collapsed on her bed. "I was sure he cared, after Jusenkyo, I know I heard him say it! He did! He had to have... But with what just happened, I don't know anymore. How can it be over before it ever even started?"  
  
Thinking back on the day's events, she had to wonder if perhaps she had only heard it in her mind because she wanted it to have happened. After the wedding attempt, Ranma and her had settled into a sort of truce. They had been getting along a lot better even. Now that Akane had felt somewhat more secure in Ranma's feelings towards her, it was a lot easier for her to control her temper. And of course, with Ranma getting hit less by her, he couldn't help but be in a better mood around Akane. Which had meant less insults, more getting to know each other.  
  
But even still, there had been that unspoken barrier between them, that final step yet untaken to a new relationship between them, because of what Akane had thought was maybe shyness on both their parts. She had known that in all likelyhood, she would have to be the one to knock down that final wall, to make the first move. Ranma was immature in that sense. She remembered how much of an effort it was for him to simply hold her hand, like he had done after leaving Ryugunzawa. Of course, she could admit to herself that she wasn't much more advanced in that area then he was. She had always shied away from any kind of closeness with someone of the opposite sex, ever since Kuno had made that stupid declaration. She liked boys, but after having them practically force themselves on her day after day, she didn't want anything to do with dating and stuff like that. But in the end, she had made up her mind that she could do it. She could take that one step that neither of them had been able to take before.  
  
**1 day earlier**  
  
Akane was lying in bed, thinking about stuff. And that stuff was Ranma. She knew now that she did like him. She liked him a lot. It was such a relief to be able to admit it to herself. It was almost as if a huge weight had been lifted from her back. She felt herself smiling more, being less temperamental, even less aggressive. Even Ranma's little jibes at her no longer bothered her as much. It seemed that she could see more into them now. Every time he called her uncute, it really meant that he thought she was cute. She could see that now. It was just like that movie, The Princess Bride, where Buttercup had realized that when Wesley said the words "As you wish", he was actually saying "I love you".   
  
"He likes me just as much as I like him! Whee! I can see it when he looks at me, how could I have been so blind to it before? All this time we wasted fighting with each other, with stupid jealousies coming into play all the time, on both our parts. But no more! I want more than friendship with him, but I know he'll never be able to do anything about it. I'm sure he knows somewhat of how I feel, but he'd never be able to come out and do anything about it. I'll have to be strong and be the first one to approach this."  
  
Akane thought about just how she would do it. She knew she couldn't be blunt about it, Ranma would run away if she suddenly glomped onto him a la Shampoo. That wasn't her style anyway. She just needed to get into a good conversation with him, and bring it up that way. She felt that if they just started talking about it, things would progress normally, leading into a new development for them.  
  
"Tomorrow. Tomorrow will be the day that I talk to him. I can't wait anymore. I know our feelings are real now, and I can't wait longer. I want to be able to hug him, to hold his hand, to go places together as a couple, to kiss him..." Akane smiled just thinking about it. That pig-tailed boy of hers was so cute! She didn't want to rush into marriage or anything, but there wasn't anything bad about having him as a boyfriend.  
  
She snuggled into her pillow and sighed. It seemed like tomorrow would never come. Somehow, she managed to fall asleep. And dreamt of Ranma.  
  
The next morning, she awoke with butterflies in her stomach. But the good kind, the kind you felt when you woke up and realized it was the start of summer vacation and there were good things ahead. She hummed happily to herself as she washed and got dressed. Going down to the table for breakfast, she couldn't keep a little happy grin off her face. It felt like the whole world was hers and Ranma's for the taking. Together, they could do anything.  
  
"Morning!" She called cheerfully. Sitting down in her place, she thanked Kasumi as she handed her a bowl of Miso soup.  
  
"My, aren't we chipper today. And what, dear sister, were you dreaming about last night that put you into this good mood?" Nabiki said.  
  
"Nabiki! None of your business!" Akane laughed. "Besides, if I tell you, you'll just sell the story to anyone that you could scam out of a few yen!"  
  
"Ah, so it was THAT kind of dream, now was it, Akane? Pray, do tell the details..."  
  
"My lips are sealed..." was all Akane would say, with another one of those little smiles, and a sheen lighting up her eyes. "Where's Ranma? I would have thought he'd be already eating by now."  
  
"Ranma's out with his father today. They went to tour a couple of dojo's that they got invited to see. They should be back late this afternoon though. Did you need to see him for something, Akane?" Kasumi asked quietly.  
  
"Oh, nothing that can't wait until later today I suppose. If you see Ranma before I do, can you let him know I want to talk to him?" Akane said. She couldn't help but blush shyly, and glanced down at her breakfast, hoping they hadn't noticed.  
  
"Ah hah! Could it be that my little sister has finally woken up to the land of guys? Someone's got a crush, and their name starts with an A, and ends with an E!" Nabiki giggled.  
  
"Oh my... Akane, is it true? How sweet!" Kasumi exclaimed.  
  
"You guys... Don't embarrass me! Okay, yeah, I like him. And I want to tell him, cause I know he feels the same way about me. But don't tell him, please! He needs to hear it from me, not someone else."  
  
"No prob, Akane, my silence is assured - for a price that is..."  
  
"Nabiki, not this time. Don't worry, Akane, we won't say anything to anyone unless you say it's okay. Oh, this is so romantic! I've always thought you two would make such a nice couple. I'm glad to see that you have finally grown up and are now able to see it yourself."  
  
"And please, make sure Dad doesn't find out about this. You know that he'd have a priest standing outside the door just waiting for me to finish talking to Ranma. I'm not ready to get married yet, and I'm pretty sure that Ranma isn't either. I just want him to be a bit more than a friend right now!"  
  
Akane could barely keep calm during the day. She kept running various things to say through her mind, but it was tough. She didn't want to sound rehearsed, but she didn't want to come across like a bumbling lovestruck idiot either. It had to be relaxed, or neither Ranma nor her would be able to say anything.   
  
The afternoon came and went, without the Saotome's returning to the home. Akane could hardly stand the suspense, and went to try to calm herself down in her room after dinner. Shortly before bedtime, Kasumi popped her head in the doorway.  
  
"Ranma and his father are home, Akane, dear. I think Ranma has went up to the roof to relax before bed, so if you want to talk to him, now's your chance."  
  
"Thanks, Kasumi! I'll head up there right away." Akane started opening up her window, but could barely undo the latch as her hands had started shaking.  
  
Kasumi reached over and released the catch for her. She raised one hand and laid it lovingly on Akane's face. "Good luck Akane." She whispered with a smile.  
  
Akane smiled tremulously back and slid out the window and onto the roof. Seeing Ranma sitting down, looking up at the stars, she approached him slowly.  
  
"Hi Ranma. Want some company?" She said quietly, not wanting to disturb the peaceful air.  
  
"Hey. Yeah, sure, have a seat. Just catching some fresh air before I hit the sack." Ranma leaned back against the roof's incline and sighed contentedly. "I like to watch the sky - it seems so constant, so unchanging, but millions of miles away, everything up there is moving, living, dying, just like down here."  
  
"That's beautiful Ranma. I didn't realize you had those kind of thoughts in you."  
  
"Heh. Couldn't imagine a rough martial artist to have sensitivity, huh?"  
  
"No, wait, I didn't mean that - Just that that was almost like poetry. But not the bad kind that Kuno does, more like a relaxation technique. So... how was your day?" Akane attempted to get the conversation on safer ground. This was definitely not the time for possible conflict between the two of them. She knew from experience how easy it was to get in an argument with Ranma, and didn't want any insults, hidden meanings or not, to ruin this night.  
  
"Ah, not bad, I suppose. The dojos Pops and I looked at today are pretty weak compared to the school of Anything Goes. One or two had potential, but it didn't seem as though the owners had the same commitment that my family or yours has. So, what's up with you? You look like you have something on your mind."  
  
"Well, actually yes, I do. It's important too, so I need you to just sit there and listen, okay? It's hard for me to say this, but I have to. It's about time one of us said it. I think you know what I'm talking about." Akane laid her hand on Ranma's arm and froze.  
  
*Like him? How could I have thought I liked him? I LOVE him... Oh my god, I love Ranma. I love his insecurities, his arrogance, his sensitivity, I love how when he's in Cat mode he comes to me, I love the way he looks at me... Can I tell him? I have to tell him! I can't! Oh, Kami, please, help me to relax and make this right.*  
  
She raised her head and looked into Ranma's face. Seeing his blue eyes looking back at her gave her the courage she needed. Taking a deep breath, she began.  
  
"Ranma, we've known each other for a couple of years now, we've disliked each other, we've been best friends, we've argued, we've fought, we've saved each other, you name it, we've done it together. But I can't be this way any longer. I have to let you know how I feel. I can't hide it from you anymore, I don't want to hide it from you anymore. R...Ranma, I love you!"  
  
And time stopped.  
  
A huge gasp ripped from her lips, as she suddenly remembered how to breathe. Akane tore her eyes from Ranma's face. She had said it! She had done it! Now that the gate had been opened, she felt like shouting to the heavens that she, Akane Tendo, loved Ranma Saotome!  
  
"I've loved you for almost as long as I can remember, Ranma. Everything about you, even the way you annoy me, every single aspect of your personality makes me want you in my life. I knew I liked you, I knew deep down I loved you, but I couldn't admit it to myself, let alone to you. I always needed to be in control of my life, and to admit I cared for someone was like a weakness to me. But that's not how it is! It's more like being in love with you means that I can still be in control of my life, but can share it with another person! And Ranma, that person, that special one that I want to share it with... it's you. I know you might not be ready to say I love you to me, but I know that you do feel something more than friends for me. I just need to hear it from you. Please Ranma, let's be honest with each other, it's the only way that we can move forward from here."  
  
Akane slowly raised her head from where she had been staring at her hands, and looked into Ranma's eyes, expecting to see a mirror of her feeling reflected there. But instead she saw sorrow, regret, and oh, god, no... pity in his blue eyes. Pity for her!  
  
"R...Ranma?" She choked. "Please, say something, anything!"  
  
"Akane..." Ranma started. "Akane, some things are better left unspoken..." And he stood up and walked away, gathering speed as he reached the end of their roof, suddenly leaping onto the next house, then running away into the night.  
  
Akane sat there in shock. A cold wind snapped her attention back to the fact that she was sitting alone on the rooftop. Shaking from pure emotion, she managed to climb back into her room, and crawl onto her bed. Once there, her frozen state cracked. The flood gates opened, and she cried as if she could never stop. She could feel the shards of her heart somehow still beating frantically in her chest. Never in her life, not even at Jusenkyo, had she felt this kind of soul wrenching pain.   
  
"Ranma... what went wrong? Where was I wrong in believing what you felt for me? Oh Ranma, why?"  
  
To be continued.  
  
  
- So, there you go. Chapter One done. I'm not sure yet how many chapters this will be, I don't think it'll turn into one of those epics that I've seen, but we'll see how it goes I suppose. Please R&R - let me know what you think. It's my first attempt at a more serious fic, if you've read any of my others, you know I've pretty much stuck with slapstick comedy before. Now, about Akane being somewhat OOC from the Manga/Anime - I always thought that after Jusenkyo, she had come to terms with how she felt about Ranma a bit more than before, and had grown up a bit, so I don't see that it's totally implausible for her to take the initiative like this. 


	2. Chapter Two

-Warning! Angsty Akane ahead! Eep! Don't worry though, this isn't going to stay a sad and pathetic "love lost" fic. There will be some sort of happy stuff coming... And yes, I will eventually get around to Ranma explaining his reaction - just not in this chapter. Thanks for your reviews everyone, I'm glad to see that you pretty much all agreed with the way I portrayed Akane in the first chapter. And Ghost in the Machine - That's why it was called Chapter One, and not The End. ~_^ Hehe.  
  
-Disclaimer: The Ranma 1/2 Characters are not mine to make profit on. I am simply borrowing their likenesses to create a work of fiction. Please don't sue me.  
  
  
Better Left Unspoken  
  
"Akane... Akane, some things are better left unspoken..."  
  
So few words, but enough to crush a young woman's hopes and dreams.  
  
It had been 2 months, 16 days, 13 hours, 22 minutes and some odd seconds since Akane had had her heart wrenched from her chest. The school had finally stopped calling to see when she'd be returning to class, instead sending her a Home School package. The phone had stopped ringing with calls from her friends, with invites to the mall or movies. Akane sat in her room, almost in the same spot, day after day, moving only when necessary. Meal times were met by silence, Akane eating almost mechanically, as though the food was sawdust. Most days she didn't even bother to wash or get dressed. It was as if she had ceased to exist as a person - all that was left was a shell of her former self.  
  
Night times were different. Only then did some emotion come into play. Akane managed to only get a few hours of sleep each night, spending the remainder crying.  
  
"Oh, God... I still love him! How am I supposed to live without him? It's too hard. I don't want to do it, I only want him back. I was so sure he felt the same... Ranma, Ranma, why couldn't you at least have said anything? Did you care so little for me that I wasn't even worth that small effort?"  
  
Kasumi tried frequently to bring Akane out of her depression, but all her efforts were no good. Akane would sit there and seem to listen as Kasumi gently consoled her, and explained that her life wasn't over, that there were still good things to look forward to, but as soon as the "talk" was over, she'd sink back into her room, and stare at the wall.  
  
No one had seen or heard from Ranma since that night. Akane wasn't sure if that was worse than if he had been around, tormenting her with his presence. The rest of the Nerima gang had come occasionally to the dojo, at first to find out where Ranma was, then later to try to break through Akane's shell. They were so used to her exuberance that they were frightened of the new Akane. Nothing any of them said made any kind of difference. Akane would thank them for their concern, and then show them to the door, pleading a headache or fatigue. Eventually they too stopped coming.  
  
Soun still held on to the engagement in desperation, hoping against hope that the two families could still be joined. Genma would go around muttering under his breath about how the boy had no honor, and how could he treat his father this way. It now seemed that Akane and Ranma had been the life force of the household, and now with one gone, and one only there in form, the dojo and house seemed to be painted in shades of grey. Where there had been laughter and shouts, people now talked in whispers, or didn't bother to talk at all.  
  
Nabiki couldn't believe the change in her sister. She too had tried to talk to Akane, but was met with the same response that Kasumi had. She knew that she was known throughout Nerima as the Ice Queen, the girl with no emotions, but the way Akane was acting was far beyond this. It was time something was done about it. Heading upstairs, she paused in front of Akane's door and took a deep breath. She knocked sharply on the door, and not seeming to hear Akane's pleas to be left alone, opened it and walked in.  
  
"Hey, little sister, I think we need to talk. No, wait. I need to talk, and you need to sit there and listen. And not with that glazed look on your face. Wake up, damnit! God, Akane, what are you doing to yourself? Have you looked in a mirror lately? Pardon my French, but you look like shit."  
  
"Well, excuse me! But if you haven't noticed, I've been through a bit of a rough time lately, so you've got no right..." Akane said, with rare emotion showing, before being interrupted by Nabiki.  
  
"I've got no right? Whatever Akane. As your sister, I've got total rights to say something if I see you, someone I love, throwing their life away. And over what? A guy. That's stupid Akane. If you can't see that, then maybe you're stupid too. GET. OVER. IT."  
  
"Stop it! Stop saying those kind of things! I didn't want you in here in the first place, and now all you can do is call me names? Get out of here and leave me alone!"  
  
"No, I won't. This is the first time I've seen you reacting, and I think that's a good thing. Listen up, Akane. So Ranma didn't have the reaction you were expecting. So he didn't care the same way. That's no reason for you to throw your life away. Right now, you're acting no better than Shampoo or Kodachi. Living your life for only one reason - a guy that doesn't want to be with you. I'm not saying get over the hurt, I know that will take a while, but get back to having a life! Enjoy the sunshine, your friends, provided you haven't driven them completely away, see a movie, read a book! And school - you do realize that if you don't do the work the school sent, you won't graduate? And that means no College, which I know has been a dream of yours."  
  
"My dream was a life with Ranma..."  
  
"SHUT UP! God, I can't believe my sister is spouting that kind of idiotic crap. It's fine to have a dream of being with a guy for the long run, but it wasn't your only dream or your oldest dream, so don't try to pretend it was. Move on. I'm not saying go out and find another guy, but at least consider the option in the future. Please Akane, I want my sister back - the one that loved life, that knew how to laugh, and have fun. All you're doing in here is making yourself sick. Shutting out the world doesn't do anything except cause you more problems in the long run."  
  
"It's my life, Nabiki, not yours! You're so frigid, you don't know what I'm going through! The only thing you've ever loved is money, so don't you dare tell me how to act. God, you're such a bitch! Just leave me alone! I love him, and he left me! Of course I'm going to be upset! Maybe it's something a non caring unfeeling person like yourself wouldn't be able to understand!"  
  
"Go ahead, get mad at me, call me names, do whatever, Akane. At least then I know that you're still alive inside. But still, acting like your life is over is just being immature. I thought you had grown up since you came back from Jusenkyo... looks like I was wrong." Nabiki said with a trace of scorn.  
  
Akane blew up. Picking up the nearest object she could get her hands on, she threw it with all her might at Nabiki. Luckily it was only a stuffed animal, but the sheer force was enough to knock the girl off balance.  
  
"Get out! Get out of here! Leave me the hell alone!" Akane got off her bed, with a look of fury.   
  
"Fine, I'll leave, but at least think about what I said, Akane. Don't live your life thinking about the past and what went wrong. Be mad, at least it shows you feel something other than apathy. It's almost like having the old Akane back." Nabiki said as she picked herself up and left the room.  
  
Akane threw a few ceramic figurines at the closed door, wishing it was Nabiki's head. Then she threw herself onto the bed and cried herself to an exhausted sleep. All that night her dreams were filled with all the things that Nabiki had said, replaying in all cruelty over and over.  
  
She woke up the next morning still tired. She couldn't help think about all the stuff Nabiki had said yesterday. She hated to admit it, but it was true. She had been acting really horribly to everyone that had tried to help her through the roughness. And all she had done was sit there like a lump, thinking her life was over. Realizing this, she got out of bed, washed, got dressed and headed down to breakfast. Seeing Nabiki leaving her room, she stopped her in the hallway.  
  
"Nabiki... I'm sorry. I've thought about what you said, and you were right. You were right about everything. I've been a stupid wreck, and selfish. I didn't stop to think that how I was acting was affecting my family. I'm not promising that I'm going to be able to change back to "Happy" Akane right away, I'm just not there yet, but I'll be better. I do need to get out of this house, and do stuff. It'll be hard, but I can do it - I can be strong like I was before."  
  
"Akane, you have no idea how good that sounds! I'll help you however I can - in fact I'm feeling so generous with being so happy and all, that I won't even charge you for your first two sessions of "Welcome back to life" tutorials!"  
  
"Nabiki..."  
  
"Just kidding, just kidding... So, what do you say we go for a walk later, huh? I think that's probably better than going somewhere crowded like the mall or a movie."  
  
"Sounds nice. Let's ask Kasumi as well. We haven't done anything, just us three, in a long time, even way before this whole mess started." Akane said with a small smile, already starting to feel somewhat better.  
  
Over the next little while, Akane started to get better. She smiled more, and started working on her school work. She hadn't gone back to the school, though, as she just wasn't ready to face the mass of boys or Kuno, since they had no doubt by now heard about Ranma's absence. She still thought about Ranma a lot, and it still hurt, but it was no longer that crushing agony that it had been. She knew she still loved him, and that a part of her would always love him, but she could now see that she had a life outside of him.  
  
Akane also got back into training her Martial Arts. When Ranma had been living with them, she had almost stopped practicing, after all, she had been too busy being kidnapped, or going on various adventures with Ranma and the gang. True, her life now was a little more boring, as when Ranma had left, so had all the trouble that seemed to follow him. Her first few training sessions made her realize how rusty she was. She had gained some power over the past few years, but her style was definitely lacking.  
  
One evening, about a month after Nabiki's talk, she was working on a new routine in the dojo, when Kasumi came in.  
  
"Akane, you have a visitor"  
  
Akane's first thought was "Oh my God! It's Ranma, he's come back!" Then she was mad at herself for thinking that. It was true that everytime the phone rang, or the doorbell sounded, her heart gave a little leap, but she was working on it.   
  
"Ryoga's come to see you, isn't that nice of him?" Kasumi continued.  
  
"Oh, Ryoga! I haven't seen him in a long time!" Akane wasn't sure if she was happy or sad that it wasn't Ranma, as she really had no idea how she would react if he ever did come back.  
  
Akane wrapped a towel around her neck and invited Ryoga into the dojo.  
  
"I'm so happy to see you, it's been way too long! What have you been up to? How's Akari? Are you guys getting serious yet?"  
  
"Well, that's actually what I came to talk to you about, Akane." Ryoga said with a little frown.  
  
Akane laughed. "I don't know that I'm the best person to ask for relationship advice, Ryoga."  
  
"No, it's not that. Akari and I are getting serious, but before I fully commit to her, there's something that I have to know. It's about you. You see, I, umm..." Ryoga broke off, blushing profusely.  
  
"Come sit down, and we'll talk. Please, you know that you can talk to me about anything." Akane went and sat down at a small table in the room.  
  
"Well, Akane, you must have known that I like you."  
  
"Of course! And I like you too! You're a great guy."  
  
"No, Akane, I meant that I really like you... What I'm trying to say here is... Oh man, this is hard... I'm just going to come out and say it. I've had feelings for you for the longest time! I need to know if there is any kind of chance for us! I like Akari a lot, but I can't stop thinking about you, either. I'm so confused, I can't lead Akari on with false hopes like this any longer. I have to make a choice, but I don't even know what I want that choice to be. I just needed to tell you my feelings!" Ryoga looked like he wanted to run away as fast as he could, to get lost somewhere extremely remote.  
  
"Ryoga... I can't really say that I'm surprised by this, I sort of had the feeling recently that you felt like this, but I have to let you know, I can only ever be friends with you. It would be too hard to even try for anything else. I look at you, and all I can think of is Ranma. So many of my memories of you involve him, that it would be like constantly reliving my past, being with you. That wouldn't be fair to either of us. Maybe if I had met you without knowing Ranma, or with you not knowing Ranma, but as it is, I can't. I just can't. Ryoga, I'm so sorry. Please, I hope that this won't ruin our friendship." Akane said sadly.  
  
Ryoga sat in silence for a bit, then nodded his head. "Well, that's pretty much what I had expected to hear, I guess that I just needed to hear it from you. I do love Akari, and you will always hold a special place in my heart, but you are right - it wouldn't be fair to either of us if we tried to make anything more than a friendship between us. Thank you for being honest, and yes, I still want to be your friend. But there's still something else I have to tell you, about how I was after that water at the wedding..."  
  
"Oh Ryoga, don't worry, I already know!" Akane said with a smile.  
  
Ryoga's jaw dropped. "You do? And you're not mad? Akane, I'm so sorry, I never meant to let it continue that long, I never meant any dishonor to you!"  
  
"Oh Ryoga, I know that you were just confused at the time, and didn't want Ranma to have the water. I know that now if you had a second chance, you would have let him have it."  
  
"What??!! Uhh, yeah, that's it. Once again, I do apologize to you for ruining that day. I'd apologize to Ranma too, but... well, you know." Ryoga realized then that he'd never be able to tell Akane about P-Chan. She didn't need any more hurt dealt out to her than she had already received. And it wasn't like the little pig would ever be making another appearance in her bedroom anyways. Sometimes it was just better to let things lie as they were.  
  
"Well, I'd better be going. Akane, thank you for your friendship, it means a lot to me. What we talked about helped me realize that although I thought that I loved you, I really love Akari. I guess you were the girl I couldn't have, and I had let that build up to more in my mind." Ryoga wasn't exactly sure if this was the truth or not, but it was the best way he could make a graceful exit.  
  
"I hope we see you back here soon! Akari is a lucky girl to have found a guy like you. You make sure you treat her right, okay? I want you to be happy!" Akane smiled at Ryoga as she walked him to the exit.  
  
"And Akane? I didn't really want to bring this up, I know it's still a hard thing for you to talk about, but I'm glad to see you're doing better. We were all so worried about you for a while there. It's nice to see you smile again."  
  
"Thank you. If it wasn't for my family and my friends, I don't know how I would have gotten through this past little while. You were all so understanding, even when I didn't deserve it."  
  
"I have to admit, part of me still wants to track him down and yell "Ranma Saotome, prepare to die for treating Akane like this!" but I guess old habits die hard, huh?"  
  
"Yeah, I suppose they do. Thanks for stopping by, Ryoga. It was really nice seeing you again, I'm glad we got to talk."  
  
Akane smiled as she closed the door. It had been hard to let Ryoga down like that, but she knew it had to be done. Then she frowned. It hadn't been all that hard. If she had been able to do it, why hadn't Ranma?  
  
End Chapter Two  
  
  
- Okay, before anyone starts screaming at me, Ranma WILL be showing up eventually in this fic, probably as soon as the next chapter! I am after all a die hard Ranma and Akane fan, even though I'm completely in love with Ryoga... ^_^ And yes, Ryoga was OOC, but after all, this is after the manga, so who's to say that he didn't grow up too? And besides, it's my story so there! :P Hehe, just kidding. But really, this is a continuation fic, so I'm choosing to have them grow up and mature a bit after the Jusenkyo experience. Please continue to R&R - it really helps me write when I know that people are reading and enjoying. And if you aren't enjoying it, you can either tell me what's wrong with it, or just stop reading it! 


	3. Chapter Three

-I can't believe how fast I'm writing this... This chapter was written in one sitting, in about an hour - in fact, that's pretty much how all the chapters so far have gone. Hopefully the rest of this story will come as easily. Thanks for all the reviews, I appreciate all the input you guys have given - hopefully this chapter will ease a few minds about some of the things you were concerned about, with Ranma's actions.  
  
-Disclaimer: Rumiko Takahashi has all rights to the Ranma 1/2 characters. I'm just being selfish by using them for my own satisfaction.  
  
  
Better Left Unspoken  
  
It had now been almost 6 months since Ranma had left. Everyone had pretty much given up on his returning. Even the rumors that had been circulating about his departure had faded. They had been pretty ridiculous anyway. Everything from Ranma actually being in a mental hospital after getting hit on the head one too many times by a mallet to him being stuck in girl form and joining a convent. Akane hadn't really felt like explaining what had actually happened. Her family knew, and her friends had figured it out after her bout of depression, but as far as she was concerned, that was all that needed to know. The rest of the Nerima gang had also figured it out, but Akane wasn't talking to them all that much anymore. The only one she really kept in contact with was Ryoga. Ukyo, Shampoo and her had attempted to become friends since Ranma had left, but it just didn't work. Three girls that loved the same guy just didn't make a good combination.  
  
Akane had been doing much better. She was still going to graduate with her class, after having worked really hard on her schoolwork at home. It had been tough, but also a great way to keep her mind off of a certain pig-tailed boy. She often got together with her friends from the high school, doing typical girl things, getting back into the swing of life.  
  
She was not dating, but it was certainly not for lack of opportunities. A lot of guys had asked her out, but she would just tell them that she wasn't ready for any kind of dating just yet. She knew eventually she'd be able to, but it wasn't anything she was going to rush into without being sure that she was ready. Thankfully, none of the guys put up too much of a fuss. And the occasional one that did got a taste of the old Akane courtesy of a mallet to the head.  
  
Akane and her sisters had grown much closer again, now that there weren't so many chaotic interruptions in their lives. They often would do things together, without having to worry about a massive fight breaking out, or a curse being put on them. It was much more relaxing, and definitely less stressful, albeit a bit boring... Akane would sometimes find herself wishing for some of the action that she had gotten used to in the past few years.  
  
Her feelings for Ranma hadn't changed that much, she was still in love with him, but it didn't hurt anymore. Well, almost anymore. There was still the occasional night where she'd wake up from a dream of him to find herself crying. But those times were getting less and less. It was true after all, the pain did get better over time, life did go on.  
  
Akane was training regularly now, and had improved a great deal. She had learned a lot of new techniques, and had even managed to get Genma to show her a few new moves, although she modified the training subtly, without him realizing it. Although he knew a lot of Martial Arts, he really wasn't a good teacher. So Akane would just find a better way for him to teach her it, without risk to her life or sanity, and sway him over to that method.  
  
Soun had still tried to keep the engagement on, in fact, it hadn't ever been officially dissolved, but whenever he'd bring it up, Kasumi would gently steer the conversation to something else. She had that knack of being able to change the topic without any kind of conflict arising.  
  
Nabiki had mellowed out somewhat as well. What with repair costs for the house and dojo plummeting drastically, she wasn't so hellbent on making money hand over fist. She still was amassing a small fortune, but she was back to her usual scams - in school betting and the like. She had been a large factor into preventing the Kuno's from bothering Akane over the past while. It was wonderful what a restraining order would do, especially when the richest family in town didn't exactly want the public to know that there was one against them.  
  
All in all, the Tendo's weren't doing too badly.  
  
One evening, just as Akane had finished her daily workout, and was heading to the furo to wash, the doorbell rang.  
  
Kasumi's voice echoed out from the kitchen. "Can someone please get that? My hands are all sticky at the moment, and I really can't leave this recipe right now. Akane? Are you out there? Would you mind, dear? Oh, and if it's someone for Father, can you let them know that he's out with Mr. Saotome for the evening?"  
  
"Don't worry, Kasumi, I'll get it." Replied Akane, heading to the door. "It's probably a salesman - do we want any?"  
  
"No, not today, thank you." Kasumi answered.  
  
Akane laughed as she opened the door.  
  
Her laughter cut short, as though chopped through with a knife.  
  
"Hi. I'm back."  
  
(A/N - if I was really cruel, I'd end this chapter here... but I won't! ^_^)  
  
*SLAM!!* The house shook as Akane whipped the door closed. She spun around and fell backwards against the door, her heart pounding.  
  
*He's back... he's back... Ranma's here... Ranma's back and I look like crap! I'm a sweaty mess, and he's here. Ranma's at the door, and I don't know what to say, or what to do... He's back, and I'm a mess! He came back...* Akane had a million things running through her head, all basically saying the same thing.  
  
Kasumi came out of the kitchen, drying her hands on a towel. "Who was at the door, Akane?"  
  
"Ranma." Akane mouthed, not seeming to be able to make a sound.  
  
"What was that? I'm sorry, dear, I couldn't hear you."  
  
"Ranma... was at the door." Akane managed to whisper, still in complete shock.  
  
"Ranma? Oh, he's back! Umm, Akane, where is he?"  
  
"Oh my God! I slammed the door in his face! All he said was that he was back, and I slammed the door! Ranma!" Akane yelled as she threw open the door and raced out to call after the young man walking away down the street.  
  
Akane raced out, right into Ranma's chest, as he still stood there, looking slightly dazed. He caught her before she stumbled and fell, but she immediately stiffened, and he dropped his hands from her in confusion.  
  
"I take it you weren't expecting me?" Ranma said.  
  
Akane looked at Kasumi helplessly. She just couldn't say anything, all she could do was stand there like an idiot, looking at the boy that had walked so casually out of her life 6 months earlier, and now seemed to be walking back in the same way.  
  
"Oh, Ranma. No, we weren't. It would have been nice if we had known you were coming. I'm afraid I didn't make enough for supper."  
  
"Kasumi, that's okay, I'm not really hungry." Akane's voice cracked. "I just remembered, umm, I have to, umm, be... somewhere else... right now. Yeah, I've got to go, or I'll be late for... that... thing I have to do." She ran up the stairs, taking them 3 at a time.  
  
A few seconds later, they heard her bedroom door close. Ranma looked at Kasumi, obviously not understanding what was going on. Nabiki came into the front area, having heard the commotion, to find out what was going on.  
  
"So, the prodigal son returns. Here to stamp the final blow on Akane, are we? Well, not while I'm around!" Nabiki hissed at Ranma.  
  
"Okay, can someone please tell me what's going on? Why are you all looking at me like I've grown a second head or something?" Ranma replied.  
  
"What's going on? WHAT'S GOING ON?? You take off, out of the blue, for 6 months, with no notice, no letting us know where you went, or why you left, and then come waltzing back in here like you just left this morning? And you ask us what's going on?" Nabiki's voice started to get louder and louder.  
  
"Nabiki, please. Why don't we let Ranma explain his actions before we do something hasty." Although said politely, the words Kasumi spoke, had a touch of ice behind them. It was fairly clear that she was almost as mad as Nabiki was, or as mad as Kasumi could get, anyway.  
  
"Wha...? Hold on just a sec! I wrote every week to let you guys know where I was! I wrote Akane every couple of days! Heck, I even wrote the old man a couple of times." Ranma said, visibly stunned by Kasumi and Nabiki's attitudes.  
  
"Yeah, right Ranma. And next you'll tell us that the post office must have lost every single one of those letters, because we sure as hell didn't see them." Nabiki sneered. "My God, do you have any idea what it was like for us, how Akane was? How you almost destroyed my little sister? And you try to cover it up with some stupid lie about letters that you sent?"  
  
"Okay, I don't know what you're talking about. I don't know why you didn't get any of my letters, but I did send them." Ranma started to get defensive. "I've got the address that I sent them to written down right here." He rummaged through his bag, and pulled out a scrap of paper.  
  
Nabiki snatched the paper from him and looked at it. "Ranma, you IDIOT! All that you've got here is "Tendo Household, Nerima, Tokyo, Japan". Do you have any idea how BIG this place is? How many Tendo's there are in Tokyo? We do have a street name and number, you know."  
  
"Well, I couldn't remember what street it's on - I never bothered to look before. And besides, everyone in the area knows this place. You mention the name Tendo, and they know who you guys are."  
  
"Ranma... The post office in wherever the hell you were doesn't! God, you are the most clueless, dumbest, idiotic piece of semi-human I have ever met!" Nabiki was still furious.  
  
"Nabiki, dear, why don't you go try to relax - you can talk to Ranma after you've calmed down. We need to find out what happened here, and we're not going to be able to do that if you're like this. I'll talk to him right now, and then maybe tomorrow, we can all sit down together and get things straightened out." Kasumi used her power of suggestion on Nabiki.  
  
"Don't think I don't know what you're doing Kasumi." Nabiki said. "Fine, I'll leave you to it then. I really don't want to talk to him right now anyway. I've got to go see if Akane is all right." She headed upstairs without another look at Ranma.  
  
"Kasumi, I really don't know what's going on here, but can you please fill me in? Why's Nabiki acting like that? Why'd Akane run away from me like I was the devil?"  
  
"Oh, Ranma... You really don't know, do you? Well, you'd better come in and sit down. We've got a lot to talk about." Kasumi let Ranma enter the house.  
  
Kasumi filled Ranma in on what had happened in the household since he had left. Ranma was visibly shaken, almost to the point of tears, when he heard about how Akane had been.  
  
"I did that to her... I almost destroyed the girl I care about, all because of my stupidity. Nabiki was right - I am idiotic!" Ranma groaned.  
  
"Well, the letter thing was a silly mistake, but the way you left Ranma. Why on earth would you do that? So coldly - I didn't think you were like that. I was so disappointed in you, I still am."  
  
"Kasumi - that's not how it was. When Akane told me she loved me, I couldn't believe it! It was what I wanted to hear, but the thing I wanted to hear the least! I love her too, I can finally say it, I've said it to myself every night since I've been gone, but I couldn't say it that night. Even though I felt it, my stupid lack of maturity kicked in, and I froze! God, I wanted to say something, and I couldn't. I panicked, Kasumi. Don't you think I regret it? I ran away, trying to think about how I could say how much I love her, without scaring her. If I had told her all that I felt for her, I was afraid she'd tell me that she didn't feel that same level of love. She's my universe, I'd kill for her - I have killed for her. I'd give up everything for her if she asked me to."  
  
"But, Ranma, Akane said that you looked at her with pity..."  
  
"Pity for myself, that I couldn't say anything at the exact right moment. That I had to ruin this perfect night, where my dreams were coming true. By the time I stopped running, I was miles away, and I still couldn't think. I knew I had to grow up to be worthy of her, to deserve all the love that she offered to me, so I wrote her the next day, explaining what had happened, and what I was going to do. I've spent the last 6 months learning about myself, and training to make myself a better person. I know I was horribly immature, I know I was insensitive to her, and I knew that if I didn't do something about it, she'd lose her love for me, and I wouldn't be able to stand that!"  
  
"Oh Ranma. If only that letter had gotten to Akane. She's had 6 months to start getting over you. I don't know that you'll be able to go back to where you were." Kasumi sighed unhappily.  
  
"But maybe we can move forward! I want to be with her - I want to run up to her room, and tell her how I feel!"  
  
"No. That wouldn't be good right now. Akane needs time, Ranma. Yes, maybe you can move forward, but it won't be easy, and it won't be fast. Right now, I don't know if Akane even knows how she feels about you. I'm not sure if she knows whether she loves you or hates you. And if you went up there, and told her what you've just told me, I'm sorry, but she wouldn't believe it at the moment. You'll have to slowly explain to her, once she's had a chance to get used to you being back here again. This is such a shock to her, that I'm afraid of how she'll react. And if she starts to go back to how she was after you left - Ranma, I'll have to ask you to leave her alone."  
  
"What can I do, Kasumi? I need to do something... I can't let things end this way! I just can't!"  
  
"You want Akane, you'll have to fight for her. Not against anybody but yourself. You'll have to prove your love all over again. But don't be a fool this time around. Don't hide your feelings like you did before."  
  
"I can do that! I'd be glad to do that, if it could mean that Akane and I could be together. But how? I don't know where to start!"  
  
"Well, I think it's time you did some courting, Ranma. Forget that you're her fiancé, start off by being her friend again, and take it from there, the way it should have been in the first place."  
  
End Chapter Three  
  
  
-So, next chapter will be what happened in Akane's room before and after Nabiki got there. Hmm - haven't decided exactly what that will be yet, but as this thing seems to be writing itself, we'll all be surprised! Sigh... Hope you are enjoying this, R&R please! Now, my fingers are sore so I've got to take a break for tonight - but 3 chapters in almost as many days, not too bad. Hopefully the next one will be out by the weekend. See you then! 


	4. Chapter Four

Thanks to everyone that reviewed this story so far. I appreciate all your comments. I hope that everyone is enjoying this. I never thought I'd be able to write a "serious" Ranma fic, after all, I've only ever done comedic ones. But I'm really having a good time writing this one. Well, enough about me - on to the chapter!  
  
Disclaimer: Ranma and related characters are owned by Rumiko Takahashi. Only the storyline is mine. Yes, small consolation, I know, but it makes me feel a wee bit better.  
  
  
Better Left Unspoken  
  
Akane ran up the stairs, taking them 3 at a time. She raced down the hallway and into her room. Closing the door, she couldn't stop shaking. It had happened. After 6 months, he was back. Damn him for coming back! Damn him for going away! Damn him for still having such an effect on her! She had thought that she was getting over him, but just seeing his face, his smile, his eyes, oh, his eyes... - it had brought back every single feeling that she had ever felt for him. The love, the anger, the sadness - all threatened to swoop in and overwhelm her.  
  
She started pacing back and forth - she couldn't stay still or she'd go insane. What was she going to do? How was she supposed to act? From the way that he had shown up, all super casual, maybe that was how he expected her to act as well? Like nothing had ever happened? She couldn't do that. But she couldn't let him see how he made her feel. There was no way she'd let herself be humiliated by him again.  
  
"Oh God... I don't want to love him, but I do. It's not fair! I tried so hard this past while to get on with my life, and he had to show up and ruin everything! How can you love someone, but hate them at the same time? I don't understand... Oh Ranma..."  
  
Part of her wanted to run back down the stairs and throw herself on Ranma and beg that he give them a second chance. But the other part of her - the part that had struggled to rebuild after he had left --wouldn't let her. She stood by her closed door, and shut her eyes. She could hear faint snatches of her sisters and Ranma talking downstairs. Nabibi's voice being the most audible. She couldn't really make out the words, but she could tell that Nabiki was seriously pissed. Akane smiled. Nabiki had been so great lately - after having been the one to get Akane out of her slump, the two of them had been really close, talking about everything and anything. Nabiki understood better than anyone about how Akane felt about Ranma. So she wasn't too surprised that Nabiki was probably ready to strangle Ranma just for having the nerve to appear like this.  
  
"Ranma, you IDIOT!" One sentence carried audibly into Akane's room. Yep, that was Nabiki - Akane couldn't help but grin a bit, although it had a bit of hysteria in it. How many times had that sentence been said in this house? Of course, it had usually been said by her, followed by a malleting. And then of course, the insults followed. Akane trembled, not wanting to rehash the old memories, but they kept surfacing, one after the other, the bad and the good.  
  
She heard footsteps coming up the stairs, and then a light knock on her door. Dashing away the tears from her eyes with a sweep of her hand, she went to answer it after Nabiki had said it was her.  
  
"Akane! Are you okay? Look, I don't know why that jerk showed up here, but I'll get rid of him. I can have him out of here in about 5 minutes. Kasumi's just talking to him right now, but still..."  
  
"Nabiki... thanks for the offer, but I can't do that. I've got to talk to Ranma. I need him to tell me why he did what he did. I need to hear it to get on with my life."  
  
"No! You were doing perfectly fine without him coming back and messing up your life again! I'm not going to let him hurt you again. I won't let you go through that kind of pain again."  
  
"I don't think Ranma could hurt me any worse than he did when he left before. I've grown up a lot in the past 6 months, Nabiki - I'm not a little girl anymore. I just need the closure, that's all. He can say his piece, and then he can go do whatever." Akane said the words, but her eyes told a different story.  
  
"You still love him as much as ever, don't you? I don't understand it... how does he still have such a hold on you?"  
  
"It's not a hold - it's more like a bond. Ranma and I went through so much stuff together for almost 2 years. And I loved him with all my heart - that's not just something you can wipe away just because you want it gone."  
  
"I know, Akane. It's just hard for me - I feel so powerless to help you this time."  
  
"Oh Nabiki!" Akane grabbed Nabiki in a ferocious hug. "You've been the biggest help to me, but there are some things that I'll have to do on my own. And confronting Ranma is one of them. I might need your shoulder to cry on later, but you need to let me do this myself."  
  
"Alright, but I'll be waiting right outside when you talk to him. I hear anything that makes you upset like last time, I'll be in there with a horde of people ready to get him out. I could probably get him deported even though this is his homeland."  
  
Akane laughed. "Hahaha, Nabiki, I can't believe you were actually able to make me crack a grin at that! I don't think that those kind of extreme measures will be needed. I'm sure Ranma just came back to get his things, and then will take off again." She sobered up quickly. "The only problem is, I don't know if I want him to leave again. Maybe we can work things out - maybe we still have a chance... Maybe I can make him love me..."  
  
"Hey! Remember! Be strong! Be the Akane that I've seen in the past months - the survivor, the fighter! The Akane that knows she is a person by herself - who doesn't need someone else to complete the picture unless she wants them to!" Nabiki looked worried. Fragile, emotional Akane was the last person she wanted to see resurfacing.  
  
"You're right - and I know it. I will be strong. I won't let him hurt me again like before. But like I said, I do need to talk to him - to at least give him the chance to explain his actions."  
  
"Akane... there's something you should know. Ranma did write to you - from what he said, it sounds like he wrote a couple letters a week to you. The stupid idiot just didn't mail them correctly, so they never got here. I don't know what the letters said, but that's why he walked in the way he did - he didn't know that this was the first contact with him since then."  
  
Akane sank down on her bed, visibly stunned. *He wrote to me? And a couple of times a week? He hadn't forgotten all about me! Maybe he does care! Maybe we CAN still work this out...* Akane slapped herself in her mind. *Wake up girl. Just because he wrote, doesn't mean anything. They could have been "The weather is nice here" type letters. Don't get your hopes up.*  
  
"Earth to Akane..." Nabiki said, sitting down beside her on the bed. "Look, I know you have to talk to Ranma. Did you want to do it tonight or wait? Personally, I think you should wait until tomorrow - give yourself a chance to calm down. If you go and talk to him now, neither of you will be able to be reasonable - it'll just end up being another typical Ranma and Akane fight fest, regardless of how much either of you have matured."  
  
"You're right, I will wait until tomorrow. Thanks, Nabs. I don't know what I would do without you helping me through this." Akane yawned loudly. "Okay, I've got to get to sleep - don't know how much I'll get, but I'm totally exhausted. Seeing Ranma tonight... well, it's hard to explain what it was like - good, bad, terrifying, horrible, incredible..."  
  
"I know, Akane - I can see it in your eyes. Just be careful okay? I love you, you know."  
  
"Love you too, Nabs... night..."  
  
Nabiki left the room quietly, as Akane was almost already dozing off. Heading towards the stairs, planning to go outside to get some fresh air. Hearing voices coming from the dining area, she paused. Listening in on Kasumi's and Ranma's conversation, she heard Ranma express his feelings for Akane, and Kasumi's advice.  
  
*Hmm... So you're gonna try and win her back, huh? Well, you'll have to go through me first.*  
  
As Ranma left the room and headed for the guest bedroom, Nabiki pulled him aside.  
  
"Look, I don't know the whole story, and I don't even know if I want to know. Right now, all I know is how much pain you caused Akane. I heard you say to Kasumi how much you love her, and what you're planning to do. I don't know if you'll be able to do it - I'm not sure whether Akane will be won over. But I'm telling you now - I'll be watching. If I see you messing with her in any way, shape or form, you are history. There will be no way that Akane would ever consider being with you after I was through with you. If you hurt her again, even once, that's it - no more chances. I'm not going to tell Akane what I heard - that's for you to tell, not me, but I'm warning you. Right now, I don't like you. I can't stand you. But because of Akane, I'm giving you the opportunity to make things right. To correct past mistakes. So, Ranma, treat my sister right, or else." Nabiki finished by walking off, her back stiff.  
  
Ranma looked after her and sighed. "Looks like Akane isn't the only person who's trust I have to gain back. I'll do it though." Looking up towards Akane's room, his eyes glistened. "Akane... Can I ever make things right...?"  
  
  
End Chapter Four  
  
Well, this was a shorter chapter this time, but that was only because it fell into the same timeline as the previous one. Coming up next - Ranma and Akane talk. What will happen? Will they overcome their problems? Hey, I'm asking you, cause I don't know... Just kidding... But really, things in this story are writing themselves. Like Nabiki - I didn't plan for her to be a possible obstacle for Ranma to win back Akane - it just kinda happened... Anyways, read and review - new chapter soon - basically as soon as I get a chance to write one this weekend. 


	5. Chapter Five

-Hmm, looking back at my last chapter, I see I basically promised you guys this chapter about 5 days ago. Oops. Anyways, better late than never? Hehe. So, this chapter is out just in time for my birthday. Yay me. Not like that has anything to do with the story, but yes, I am a year older today. So, personal life aside, enjoy this chapter.  
  
-Disclaimer: I am not dressing up as Rumiko Takahashi for Halloween to try to convince myself that I do actually own the characters in this fic. I'm not that desperate yet. *Hides the costume she already bought...*  
  
Better Left Unspoken  
  
Akane walked into the dojo, and saw Ranma there. She knew they had to talk. Hoping to get things off to a good start, she put what she hoped was a casual smile on her face, and approached the young man.  
  
"H..Hi, Ranma..."  
  
"Hey, Akane. How's the tomboy doing today?"  
  
Akane paused, a little shocked. It looked like Ranma wanted to pretend the past 6 months had never happened. Well, that was all fine and good, but they needed to clear the air between them. The last 6 months had happened, and they had had a huge effect on her life. She couldn't just pretend that everything was fine, that they could just move on. She had to know where things stood between them, where they could go from here.  
  
"Well... I'm fine, I guess, but... don't you think we need to talk about stuff? Like, I don't know, what you've been up to this past while, and what I've been up to, stuff like that? If you don't want to talk about what happened that night you left, that's fine for right now - in fact, maybe we shouldn't just yet, but we will have to..." Akane trickled off, realizing she was on the verge of babbling.  
  
Ranma nodded his head. "You're right, we do have to talk. I know, let's talk about you! So, I heard you did the whole minor insanity bit, huh? Not too shabby - good way to get sympathy, you know. But a bit sad, don't you think? I mean, come on... who's gonna feel anything other than pity at a poor little uncute tomboy, mooning over a lost love who never felt anything but resentment towards her. If it wasn't for our dads, we would never even have met, and I wouldn't have ever had to deal with your pathetic little outburst that night. Confessing your love to me? What did you think I was going to do? Jump into your arms, pick you up and carry you away to live happily ever after? Psh. Get real." He started to laugh meanly, with open contempt in his voice.  
  
Akane's legs wobbled, and then gave out. She sat down on the floor with a soft thump, and stared at Ranma. "No... no, that's not how it was - Nabiki told me you wrote me - you cared enough to try to keep in touch with me... And that night - I just, I thought, well..." She couldn't continue without bursting into tears, and she didn't want to do that. Oh God, she couldn't go through that again. Was he going to get up and leave? What had happened to the Ranma she knew - this resentful, angry, sneering boy wasn't the one she remembered.  
  
"Oh, yeah, I wrote letters - telling you what an idiot you were to ruin a perfectly good situation that I had going on. Free meals, a place to sleep where I didn't get rained on - well, except when you'd be so kind as to wake me up with a pail of water - but that's beside the point, now isn't it? Get. This. Through. Your. Head. I don't love you. I don't like you. If you crawled into a hole and disappeared, I'd throw a party. And now, I come back, and find that while I was gone, your little attitude somehow convinced all my other chicks to back off. Thanks a lot. Now I've got to go out and collect them all back - with the exception of you, of course. Oh for crying out loud - now you're crying? Get a grip."  
  
"Ranma... please, why are you being like this? I thought we were friends... Ranma..."  
  
Ranma interrupted. "Ranma, Ranma, Ranma" He imitated Akane, in a singsong voice, mocking her. "You know, I used to like my name a hell of a lot more before you started saying it all the time. You know what? This isn't worth my time - I've got better things to do, then sit around here, and listen to your sad attempts at whatever you're trying to say. I'm outta here." Laughing at Akane, he strolled out the door.  
  
Akane reached pleadingly towards him, as if to catch his shirt, to hold him back. "Don't go... please... Ranma... RANMA!!!"  
  
Akane sat up in bed, shaking. She had had the worst sleep of her life. Her night had been filled with dreams about Ranma's return. Knowing that they would have some sort of confrontation the next day, her mind was whizzing through all kinds of scenario's, some good, some bad, and some absolutely humiliating, such as the one she had just woken up from.   
  
Looking at her window, she saw that it was early in the morning - a little earlier than she normally got up, but she just couldn't sleep any longer. She got up and went to the furo. After washing up and getting dressed, she sat down at her desk. It'd be a while still before Kasumi got up to start making breakfast. Normally, that would be an incentive for her to cook for the family, but over the past while, she had been able to acknowledge exactly how bad her cooking was. She had been working on it a lot with Kasumi, and had improved, but she knew that when she was upset or worried, it was fatal for her to set foot in a kitchen.  
  
There was a light tap at her door. Figuring it was Kasumi, seeing how she was doing, Akane rose to answer it. Opening it, she came face to face with Ranma. Holding back the urge to slam the door in his face again from panic, she swallowed a great gulp of air.  
  
"Hi, Akane. We need to talk. I'm sorry to do this so early, but I heard you moving around in here, and just thought that maybe..." He trailed off, looking at her.  
  
Akane stood there dumbly. Then she mentally shook herself and managed to get out some words. "Yes, Ranma. We do need to talk. Did you want to come in?"  
  
"Umm, no, I was maybe thinking we could go out to the backyard? It's a nice morning and all, you know. We could, umm, sit by the Koi pond or walk around, or something like that, whatever."  
  
Akane sighed inside. All of a sudden, she could see that Ranma was as nervous about talking to her as she was to him! Even though she had not much of an idea about how the conversation would go, this realization made her feel so much better. She nodded in agreement, and they headed outside.  
  
Getting to the pond, they sat down, neither one seeming to be able to start talking. An uncomfortable silence fell over them. A few times, each of them would look up, and open their mouth, and then... just as suddenly, close it again, and look anywhere but at the other person.  
  
Suddenly, a crow landed a short distance away, and let out a loud raucous caw. They both jumped, and looking somewhat embarrassed, started to laugh. The laughter helped to melt away some of the tension and nervousness that they were feeling.  
  
"Akane, I..."  
  
Ranma, do you think..."  
  
Having both started to talk at the same time, they laughed again, albeit a bit panicky, and then fell silent.  
  
"What I mean is..."  
  
"Maybe we should start by..."  
  
This time the laughter wasn't forced. They managed to get their mirth under control and looked at each other.  
  
"Akane, let me go first - there's so much I have to say, but I don't know the right words. I've just got to say that now. So, if I end up sounded like an idiot, or a jerk, I don't mean to."  
  
"Alright, Ranma. I promise I'll try to keep that in mind. I've got stuff to say too - and, I know it's hard."  
  
"Okay, first off, I've got to tell you - Kasumi told me last night about what happened after I left. So, you don't need to talk about that time if you don't want to. I know it was hard for you, and I'm sorry. You don't know how sorry I am."  
  
"Ranma, let's not talk about that kind of stuff right now - let's just talk about what you've been doing for the past while."  
  
Ranma nodded, a bit relieved. "Alright, okay, where to start." He told Akane about the dojo's he had visited during his travels, about the Masters of various forms of Martial Arts he had met. He talked about spending a lot of time meditating, and acknowledging his weaknesses - not in the Arts, but in life. About how he realized that he had been keeping up a wall on his emotions, preferring to stay a kid as long as he could.  
  
"I think that maybe some of that had to do with my childhood, or rather my lack of one. This was the first place that was like a home that I could remember - I don't have any memories of living with my mom before the training trip started. I'm not blaming Pops for my problems, but, you gotta admit, he didn't really help..."  
  
"I know, Ranma. You had a lot to deal with as a kid. I guess I can sort of understand where you're coming from in this. But I have to say, it sounds like you did a lot of thinking on your trip, that it was good for you."  
  
Ranma started to laugh. Akane looked at him, surprised.  
  
"What? What did I say?" Looking back at what she had said, she didn't see anything remotely funny about it.   
  
"Nothing. It wasn't anything you said, or I said, it's just how we're saying it. Who woulda thought we'd ever be sitting here, talking like mature people, instead of whomping or insulting each other. It sounds like I'm not the only one that did some growing up and thinking in the past while, Akane."  
  
Akane mulled this over. "I guess you're right Ranma. These past months have been somewhat the same for me. I grew up too, I guess. And, you know, I don't think that's a bad thing, growing up."  
  
"No, not at all. But I gotta ask, Akane. This growing up - did it involve growing away too?" Ranma practically whispered this last part.  
  
Akane looked down at the ground. "I really don't know, Ranma. I look at you now, and I see the boy I knew, someone I cared about, in an unfamiliar man. All these feelings come rushing back, and not just good ones. I do still care about you, I'm not going to deny that, but I can't help but feel some resentment about how you left, how I didn't hear from you. I know that that last part was due to a mix up..."  
  
Ranma broke in. "A stupid mix up if you ask me. I don't know what I was thinking, Akane. I wish you had got the letters I wrote. Then maybe we wouldn't be sitting here like this."  
  
"I wish too, Ranma, but we can't go back and think about what could have been."  
  
"But can we still think about what can be? You don't need to say anything right now, cause there's still so much to tell you about why I left like I did, why I went away for so long, that I'm not going to make you answer that question until you've heard my whole story."  
  
"I'm glad you feel that way Ranma. Right now, sitting here with you, looking at you, I want to say that what happened doesn't matter, but then my brain stops me, and shouts "Of course it matters - the jerk walked away", and I want to pull out the mallet and give you a good whack for being a stupid baka, but that wouldn't get us anywhere. I feel like I'm being pulled in two different directions, and it's so confusing. And then, with Nabiki telling me to just stay away from you so that I don't get hurt again, I don't know really what to think."  
  
"I know Nabiki's really mad at me, and I don't blame her for feeling that way. I don't blame you either. But we've got to work this out together. Nothing will happen unless we both feel the same. I guess from what I'm saying here, it's probably pretty obvious how I feel, how I felt back then."  
  
Akane yelled in her head. *Then say it! Say the words! Please, Ranma, if you want us to have a chance, say the words!*  
  
"I'm not going to push myself on you, because although I know how you felt 6 months ago, I don't know how you feel anymore - sure, you said that you still have feelings for me, but I don't want to drag you into something you're not ready for." Looking at Akane, Ranma thought he saw a look of disappointment flash quickly across her face, but it came and went so fast, that he couldn't be sure it had been there at all. Even still, it made his heart do a little jump in his chest. Maybe it wasn't too late after all!  
  
*I know he's right. I can't believe how much he's grown up! But still, part of me wants to hear him finally say it.* Akane thought to herself.  
  
"So... I guess what I'm trying to say, is that I was wondering if I still have your friendship. I know we still have a lot to talk about, but I'm asking you now - will you be my friend?"  
  
"Let's keep it friends for now? Ranma, that sounds good. I missed you - I missed our friendship. I know we fought most of the time, but you were my friend. You still can be my friend. And yes, I do need to hear the rest of it, but that can take time. We have time - there's no need to rush anything. So, in answer to your question, yes, Ranma. I'll be your friend. And as for Nabiki, let me talk to her - what she's mostly worried about is that I'll jump right back into the mess I was in before, and if I can make her see that that's not what I'm doing, or what you are trying to make me do, I'm sure she'll understand." Akane did look a little worried though - she knew that Nabiki might not even be able to see why she would want to even try to be friends with Ranma again.  
  
The two young adults smiled tentatively at each other. The veranda door opened, and Kasumi came out, calling them in for breakfast. Slowly they got up and headed to the door, walking side by side, but still at a distance from each other.  
  
Akane smiled. Working on this together, they could make something out of it. If it was only friendship in the end, she thought she would be okay. And if there was something more, she'd be okay then too. She definitely wasn't going to make Ranma do all the work though - that'd be unfair to him and to her. Sure, he had some things to make up for, but then, so did she. Walking into the dining area, she realized it was going to be a pretty good day.  
  
End Chapter 5  
  
-Well. A bit of WAFFyness in this chapter. And most likely, more to come. But, don't worry, not everything is resolved yet - the duo still has some problems to overcome. So it's not going to turn into a "Oh, I've been such a horrible jerk to you, Akane, please please take me back..." "Oh, I forgive you for all the bad things you've done, Ranma" type of ending. Please continue to R&R - and if you do choose to flame, please don't make assumptions on how I'm writing the rest of this fic, cause you don't know what I have planned - but I'll let you know this much: I'm not doing the Ranma stupid boy, Akane poor girl thing. I'm only saying this cause I had a few nasty emails regarding this. 


	6. Chapter Six

-Well, this chapter was supposed to be out this past weekend, but silly me left the only copy of it on my computer at work on Friday, so I didn't get a chance to finish it til now. I'm pretty sure I've got the rest of the story settled in my head - not sure how many more chapters there'll be, but the next one should be out shortly.  
  
-Disclaimer: Mine! Mine, all mine! What? This cupcake belongs to me! You didn't think I meant Ranma and Co., did you? Sheesh... only in my dreams...  
  
Better Left Unspoken  
  
Over the next few weeks, things were going a lot smoother than they ever had before at the Tendo household. Ranma and Akane were getting into this friendship deal that they had decided on, and they were both enjoying it. Sure, each of them wished for a bit more at times, but they knew that this was the best thing for them to be doing at this point. Everyone in the household was a lot happier. Everyone except one person.  
  
Nabiki growled. "That bastard is worming his way back into my sister's life as if he never did anything. I can't believe she's so naïve to look the other way at all the stuff he did to her! So be it." She reached over to her bedside table and opened a drawer. Pressing a tiny hidden button, she pulled out a little book. Almost lovingly she ran a finger over the title - Debts owing - and smiled. "Time to call in a few... or a lot of favors." She reached for the phone. "Oh Ranma... you won't know what hit you. And as for you Akane, I'm sorry, but this is the way it has to be. I'm only doing this for you - in the long run, you'll see I was right." She felt a twinge of unease at the thought of causing Akane pain, but brushed it away. After all, what she was doing was for the greater good, right? Opening up the black book, she started to dial...  
  
Later that afternoon, Akane and Ranma were out by the Koi pond. Enjoying the sunshine, and each other's company, they were talking about anything that came to mind as a topic of conversation. At the moment, they were talking about Ranma's 10 year trip with his father. Akane knew some of the details, but she was sure that the whole trip hadn't been painful experiences like the Cat-Fist Training and Jusenkyo. She wanted to hear about the good things - the dojo's they went to, the people they met, what Ranma liked when he was little, stuff like that. And likewise, Ranma wanted to know about Akane's life. Just little things, that maybe would seem unimportant or trivial to a lot of people, but to him, they were vital pieces of the girl sitting in front of him. What had been her favorite cartoon, her favorite bedtime story, what music had she liked.  
  
It's not that they had never talked before, but really, when they thought about it, most of their conversations had revolved around what was going on at the moment. It was only now that they realized that they should make the time to really get to know each other. After all, that was what friends did.  
  
A cloud passed over the sun briefly, and Akane shivered.  
  
"You cold, 'Kane? We can go in if you want." Ranma said, chewing on a piece of grass.  
  
"No, not really, besides, it's so nice out here - the last bit of spring before summer is one of my favorite times of the year. Everything has already started to grow, and is just waiting to erupt into it's full glory." Akane smiled.  
  
"Yeah, I know what you mean - I never really thought about it before - until I came here, I only thought of weather in terms of what kind of shelter Pops and I would need. And then, after falling into that pool, all I thought about was looking in the sky for clouds or sun."  
  
"You know, I've noticed you haven't been turning into a girl as much lately - cold water doesn't seem as attracted to you as before. Wonder why that is?"  
  
"Hey! Don't knock a good thing, Akane!" Ranma laughed. "I've noticed that too. I figure it has something to do with my Ki. The calmer I am, the calmer the air around me. I noticed that if my aura is settled, danger and disaster tend to stay away. In fact, my curse is almost like a warning beacon. If I get wet, I know something is coming. And I've noticed something a lot different about you too. Mr. Mallet. Haven't seen him hardly at all since I've been back."  
  
"Oh, are you telling me you miss it? Cause I could change that if you wanted..." Akane said warningly, but with a large note of tease in her voice.  
  
"N...NO! I don't mind at all! Really, that's okay! Not a problem here..." Ranma trailed off his babbling as he saw Akane giggling at him. "Aww man... alright, you got me with that one. I should have known you were just kidding around."  
  
"Oh, and like you didn't pull the same thing yesterday when you were saying that you missed your other fiancees?" Akane smirked, remembering. "I'm sorry about the knock to the head, but I just wasn't expecting you to say that. And before I knew it, I had already whacked you - I didn't give you much of a chance to explain that you were just making a joke. I am still working on that."  
  
"Yeah, habits are hard to break, but luckily, so is my head. But at least we got it straightened out right away. And besides, you didn't whomp me as hard as you used to. Either your mind wasn't really set on it, or you're getting out of shape... ACK! Akane, joke! It was a joke! ...What's that look for?"  
  
Next thing Ranma knew, he was sitting in the pond, with a different body then he had had 2 seconds earlier. "Damn..."  
  
"Getting soft, am I? I wouldn't talk, Ranma - you should have seen that coming a mile away. But at least I only pushed you in, however tempted I was to use other means."  
  
Although the conversation sounded like it was reverting to the old Ranma/Akane fight, they both knew that it wasn't. They loved to tease each other like this, as long as they knew the other person understood that that's all it was - teasing. The minute it turned into something darker, they had an understanding that they would stop, and take what basically amounted to a Time Out.  
  
"Tomboy - shoving people into ponds like that."  
  
"Baka." Akane stuck out her tongue at Ranma.   
  
"Uncute."  
  
"Jerk."  
  
"Built like a brick"  
  
"Pervert."  
  
"Pervert!? What'd I do to be a pervert?"  
  
"Ha! I win!" It was a running contest between the two now to see who could keep the flow of insults going the longest without breaking it. "And besides, wearing a white shirt that thin while you're a girl and sitting in water definitely screams out "Pervert" in my books." Akane winked, and started walking back to the house. "I'll go tell Kasumi to put the kettle on, okay?"  
  
"Thanks, Akane. Appreciate it." Ranma watched the girl walk back to the house, smiling at the way the light wind tousled her short hair, and whipped at her skirt, lifting it just enough to make him catch his breath. Looking down at himself, and shrugging his feminine shoulders, he got out of the pond and headed towards the house. "Hope this isn't a sign that the day is about to take a turn for the worse..."  
  
Nabiki sat back from her window, the entertainment gone for the moment. "Perhaps, Ranma. Who knows what could be just around the corner." Looking at her watch, she smiled. The fun was about to begin.  
  
Akane walked into the spotless kitchen. Kasumi, looking unusually harried, glanced up and gave a relieved smile when she saw who it was.  
  
"Oh, Akane! Can you run to the market for me? I'm making a special dish for tonight, and I just realized I'm out of shiitake (A/N - a kind of mushroom). I was sure I still had some, but I guess I forgot to put them on the grocery list when I used up the last of them."  
  
"Yum - shiitake! What are you making?" Akane said, licking her lips.  
  
"Nabiki asked me if I'd make steamed dumplings, and that's her favorite filling. She hardly ever asks me to make something for her, so I didn't mind. And besides, I know the whole family enjoys them, as well as Ranma and Mr. Saotome. But I'm so busy here getting the rest of dinner ready that I just don't have time to go get them by myself. Would you mind, Akane dear?"  
  
"No problem, Kasumi! Oh! Before I forget, can you put the kettle on? Ranma had a little... accident."  
  
"Oh my... Is he okay? He's not hurt too badly, I hope?" Kasumi said with a concerned frown.  
  
"No, he's fine Kasumi. He just kind of accidently fell into the Koi pond. Don't know how that could have happened..." Akane looked around innocently, with a faint smile on her lips, and a twinkle in her eyes.  
  
"Akane... You know, I'm so happy that the two of you are finally being good to each other."  
  
"Me too, Kasumi. Me too. Okay, I'm off! I'll be back as soon as I can with those mushrooms." Akane said as she left the kitchen and headed for the door.  
  
"Make sure they're nice and fresh! And not bruised! Oh, and don't worry about the size, I'm just mincing them anyways!" Kasumi called, wiping her hands on her apron and following Akane to the door. After closing the door behind the other girl, she headed back to the kitchen and put the kettle on one of the burners on the stove. Turning it on, she turned back to her preparations.  
  
Ranma walked in a few minutes later. Seeing the kettle on the stove, the girl grabbed it and checking to see if it was hot enough, but not too hot, poured an amount over her head, and quickly changed back to his normal form.   
  
Kasumi frowned at Ranma. "Oh my... It'd be so much better if you could do that in the washroom in the future, Ranma. I just washed the floor in here."  
  
Ranma had the grace to look embarassed. Shrugging sheepishly, he scratched the back of his head. "Sorry, Kasumi, I wasn't thinking. Let me clean it up for you."  
  
"Thank you Ranma, that'd be very nice." Kasumi said as she handed him a towel.  
  
"Thanks for heating that up for me - I take it Akane was already in here? Where'd she head off to, d'ya know?"  
  
"Hmm?" Kasumi said, slightly distracted by her cooking. "Oh, yes, Akane. She was here, but she went to the store for me - she should be back in a bit. Did you need to talk to her?"  
  
"Oh, no, nothing like that, just was wondering where she had got to, is all. Anyways, that's all cleaned up now - I'll let you get back to your cooking." Ranma looked at Kasumi, who had already lost herself to her humming and cooking. With a little chuckle, he left the room. At least some things hadn't changed in the 6 months he had been gone.  
  
Ranma sat down on the couch and grabbed the remote. Flipping through the channels, he quickly discovered that there wasn't anything on that he was interested in. He picked up a manga that was lying on the side table and tried to read it, but gave up when he found that he was just looking at the same frame over and over. He felt like a ball of endless nervous energy and it was all he could do to keep himself from pacing. After driving himself crazy with the rhythm of his fingers beating a pattern on the couch, he leapt up.  
  
"Man! I'm totally tense! Must be time for a workout!" Heading towards the dojo, he paused when he heard the doorbell. "I'll get it Kasumi!" He called.  
  
"Thank you, Ranma." Came the reply.  
  
Whistling a catchy little tune, Ranma loped to the door and answered it. Standing there was a young man that he vaguely remembered from school.   
  
"Hey, Ranma! Glad to see you're back, pal! We've missed you around these parts - been pretty boring at school without you and Akane."  
  
"Hey thanks... Umm... Juro! Yeah, Juro, it's been a while hasn't it."  
  
"So, you planning on coming back or what? You missed a lot of the year, you know."  
  
"Yeah." Replied Ranma. "I don't think I'd be able to come back this year - doubt if Principal Kuno would even let me back in. I figure I might try to do some work this summer, and then finish up the rest by winter. So, what brings you by here, anyways? If you don't mind me saying, I don't think it's to see me - Nabiki, right? Don't tell me Nabiki went and found herself a guy, did she?"  
  
Juro suddenly looked a little nervous. Pulling at his collar, he said "Actually... I'm here to pick up Akane. We have a, a date tonight."  
  
Being that this was the last thing Ranma expected to hear, it was no surprise that he froze. Managing to find his voice, he croaked "A date? With Akane?"  
  
"Umm, yeah, that's what I said. Can you tell her I'm here?"  
  
"Oh, man, I'm sorry, but you must have made that date with Akane a while back now - she probably forgot to call you and cancel. Now that I'm back in town, I doubt she'll want to go out with you." Ranma said with just a touch of arrogance.  
  
"Well, no, actually we just made this date a few days ago. I asked her out a lot when you were gone, and always got turned down, but figured I'd give it one more shot, and she said yes."  
  
"Listen Juro, I think you got your wires crossed there. You must have misunderstood - there's no way you've got a date with Akane. She probably meant just a get together with some people, a casual thing, you know - I'm surprised she hasn't mentioned it to me yet - I'm sure I'll be coming." Ranma said, starting to get a little peeved.  
  
"Dinner and a movie? Just the two of us? Like as in a more than friends thing? What bit about my date with Akane don't you get? Now, can you please go get her? Our reservations are soon." Juro stepped towards the door, as if he was going to come in.  
  
Ranma blocked the entrance way. He had no idea what was going on, but there was no way this creep was going to take Akane out. "Listen, buddy. Sorry to have to tell you this, but Akane's sick. She's upstairs sleeping right now, and I'm not gonna go wake her up." It was a lame excuse, but Ranma was grasping at straws to get this guy out of here before Akane got back.  
  
"But she didn't call to cancel..."  
  
Ranma interrupted. "It was a very sudden onset of the, the flu. Yeah, she's really sick. She'd be pretty mad, in fact, if anyone saw her looking so crappy. So, you can go, and I'll be sure to tell her you stopped by. Bye now - thanks for coming." Ranma subtly, or rather not so subtly, edged Juro out of the doorway, gave a little flippant wave and shut the door. Looking out the peephole, he saw Juro stand there for a second, and then he turned and walked down the steps towards the street. Ranma didn't stop watching until he was halfway down the block.  
  
"What the hell? Akane made a date? What's going on? She'd better get home soon, cause she's got some explaining to do." His workout forgotten, Ranma sat in a chair close to the door, so that he'd catch Akane as soon as she got home.  
  
"Okay, man, chill out. Let her tell you about it. No need to confront her, don't want to start an argument - I'm sure she meant to say something, yeah, that's it, I'll let her bring it up." Ranma tried to relax himself. Using a semi-meditative state, he managed to calm himself down somewhat. There had to be a explanation for all of this.  
  
About 15 minutes later, Akane arrived home. Opening the door, and walking in, she kicked off her shoes.  
  
"Kasumi! I'm back - got what you needed."  
  
"Okay, Akane - can you bring them into the kitchen for me please?"  
  
"Sure thing, Kasumi." Akane started to head over there, when she caught sight of Ranma. "Hi Ranma! Don't tell me you missed me so much that you were waiting for me to come home!" She joked. "I wasn't gone that long, silly." After dropping off the mushrooms in the kitchen, she came back.  
  
"No, I was just relaxing, thinking about the day, and the evening, and what a nice night it is - the kind of night where people go out, and do things, you know."  
  
*Yeah, real subtle, Saotome. Give her a chance to say something.* Ranma thought to himself.  
  
"Hmm? Oh, yeah, it is a nice night for going out I suppose." Akane kept throwing glances out the window, only half listening to what Ranma was saying.  
  
"You... waiting for someone, Akane?" Ranma asked nervously.  
  
Akane jumped. "Oh. No, I was just making sure that the neighbors dog wasn't in our yard again - we've had a real problem lately with him doing his business on the grass." It was obvious that that wasn't the reason she was watching the street.  
  
Ranma found that his fingers were tapping that insane rhythm on the arm of the chair again. Slapping his other hand over top of his fingers, he tried again.  
  
"So... got any plans for the evening?" He said, trying to be casual.  
  
Akane looked at the clock. "Well, I thought about going out for a while, but I don't know, it's later than I thought. Maybe I'll just stay in after all."  
  
"I guess he's not coming here..." She whispered to herself.  
  
Ranma however, overheard. Panic set in. *Man! She did have a date with that guy! And she wasn't going to tell me about it! Phew! At least I got rid of that dweeb before she got back. Now she thinks she's been stood up or something. Come on, Ranma, turn on that charm, make her forget about that guy.*  
  
"Well, I think there's a good movie on the TV tonight, if you want to pop some popcorn and watch it with me."  
  
Akane sighed, finally turning away from the window. "Sure, Ranma. That sounds like fun."  
  
During the movie, Ranma was distracted. He kept looking over at Akane, and replayed Juro's words through his head over and over. If anyone had asked him, he could have sworn that the movie's entire dialogue consisted of two sentences: I'm here to pick up Akane. We have a, a date tonight.  
  
Lying in bed that night, he couldn't sleep. Ranma just couldn't believe that Akane had been planning to go out with another guy. And that she hadn't even been planning on telling him. He thought they were friends. Hell, he thought they were more than friends. What was going on?  
  
End Chapter Six  
  
  
-Hope you enjoyed this installment. Please R&R, I appreciate all the good stuff I've heard from you guys, and I also appreciate your comments on what you think would make this fic better. I had a really good suggestion from Gie, in a review, about how this story is really dialogue based, and to make it a bit more descriptive. So, I tried to throw in a little more of that in this chapter, don't know if I succeeded or not. Probably not, as I look back, and see that this entire chapter is just about, once again, completely dialogue... I tried... 


	7. Chapter Seven

-Well, another day, another chapter. There are probably only two chapters left to this, maybe three. Everything that was brought up in this fic will be answered - I'll be going back over the previous chapters to make sure that I don't miss anything important when resolving stuff. Thanks for all the reviews, everyone. Much appreciated, especially those of you that have reviewed several chapters. I hope to have this story completed by the end of this month, if not sooner.  
  
-Disclaimer: Rumiko Takahashi owns all rights, and she gets to decide who makes money off of her characters. Unfortunately, I am not on that list, and so have to content myself with writing fanfiction.  
  
  
Better Left Unspoken  
  
The next morning, the two families sat down at the table, waiting in anticipation for Kasumi to bring in the breakfast. A collective sigh ran through them as she laid the food on the table. As one, they dived into it, each wanting to get his or her fair share before it was all gone.  
  
"Good morning everyone!" Kasumi said cheerfully. "I hope you all had a good night sleep?"  
  
"Slept like a baby, Kasumi!" Akane said. "I feel like I could take on the world today."  
  
Ranma mumbled something incoherently. He had had a horrible night. What little sleep he had managed to get had been filled with dreams of Akane and Juro, holding hands and skipping happily off into the sunset. He wasn't in a good mood that morning at all. Akane's apparent deceptiveness had been bothering him non-stop. He wanted to come out and ask her about it, but stubborn pride held him back.  
  
Watching her carefully that day, he noticed things. Things like how every time the phone or doorbell would ring, she would leap up to get to it first. He'd watch her answer it, in obvious anticipation, and see her face fall when it wasn't who she wanted it to be. To make matters worse, the few times he had answered the phone when Akane wasn't around, it was different guys, all asking to talk to her. Thankfully, she had been out of earshot, and wasn't around to hear him rudely cut them off, telling them she wasn't at home, or was washing her hair.  
  
Finally, he couldn't take any more of it. Writing down a quick note, saying he'd be back for supper, he left the house, and wandered aimlessly through the neighborhood. He knew it was stupid to get this worked up over what still might be a misunderstanding, but he couldn't help it. It was time he acknowledged it to himself. He was jealous. He was so jealous it hurt.  
  
Back at the house, Nabiki found the note. Smiling, she pocketed it. She'd make sure that she'd tell Akane about it.  
  
"Oh wait... now what was I supposed to tell Akane?" She singsonged to herself a second later. "Can't remember - what a shame. Must not have been that important then."  
  
A little while later, Akane, realizing she hadn't seen Ranma for a bit, went looking for him through the house. She had seen that he had looked depressed about something, and wanted to see if he wanted to talk about it. Looking everywhere - the house, the dojo, the yard, she had no success. Putting on her shoes, she opened the front door, planning to go for a quick walk up their street to see if he was nearby.  
  
"Oh! Shampoo! You startled me! I'm actually just on my way out, and Ranma's not at home, so..." Akane figured that she could be civil to Shampoo now. After all, Ranma had been back for more than 2 weeks now, and the fiancees had been leaving the two of them alone. She guessed that Ranma hadn't been in contact with them during the 6 months he had been away, and they had gotten the hint. And since pretty much all Ukyo, Shampoo and she had in common was Ranma, it was no surprise that neither of them had been coming around.  
  
"So, pervert girl not have Shampoo's husband after all. Shampoo thought was no chance of husband coming to Amazon village, but now not so sure."  
  
"What are you talking about, Shampoo?" Akane said, completely taken aback at the way this conversation was starting. "Ranma is not your husband. You'd think you would have realized this by now. Anyway, I don't have time for this right now."  
  
"Stupid girl! Shampoo not leave until Shampoo see husband. Stay away too too long, but now Shampoo back to get what is hers." Shampoo planted her feet firmly on the ground, a look of stubborness appearing in her eyes.  
  
Akane sighed. "News flash, Shampoo. Ranma came back for me. Sorry to burst your happy little bubble, but it's pretty obvious that he's made his choice. Not you, not Ukyo, but me. Ranma chose me. This getting through to you yet?"  
  
Shampoo laughed. "If Airen choose you, then why he out with Spatula girl right now?"  
  
This caught Akane's attention. Whipping her head up, she stared at Shampoo. "You're lying! Ukyo hasn't been around here any more than you have since Ranma's been back!"  
  
"Maybe no, but Shampoo knows Airen is out for good walk together with Chef girl. Tomorrow he take Shampoo out on date." Shampoo said matter-of-factly.  
  
"In your dreams!" Akane said sharply.  
  
"Sigh... yes, in Shampoo's dreams, Shampoo not even have to fight for Husband with Spatula girl. But is true. Airen say will choose between Shampoo and other girl. You not even in picture anymore. So today, he out with her, tomorrow, Shampoo. Then make decision."  
  
"I don't believe you!" Akane said desperately. Ranma wouldn't do that, not this way! With a sudden intake of breath, she found a flaw in Shampoo's story. "Ha! Now I know you're lying! You say that Ranma's out with Ukyo, but yet you show up here to see him! So, why would you do that, if you knew he was out? God, Shampoo, you really are twisted, aren't you? Having to come up with feeble little lies that you can't even keep straight. And all for a futile attempt to win back a guy you never even had in the first place! Get a life!"  
  
Shampoo smiled smugly. "Akane is one who is futile, not Shampoo. Shampoo know Ranma out with Ukyo, so come here to wait for Airen to make plan for date. Shampoo know Husband be back soon. When he come with Ukyo, then maybe Akane believe what Shampoo say, hmm?"  
  
Akane's retort died on her lips, not said, as she glanced up the street, and saw Ranma walking back to the house with Ukyo hanging on his arm. As he turned up the walkway towards the door, she let out an audible gasp. Ranma looked up at her, with a frown on his face. That was enough for Akane. Throwing a look of hurt Ranma's way, she darted into the house.  
  
*Shampoo was telling the truth! He was out with Ukyo! So maybe tomorrow he's really going out with her! Oh, god, how could I have been so stupid... Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!* Akane mentally berated herself. Hadn't Nabiki warned her that Ranma would be up to his old tricks soon enough? She should have listened at the time. Now, thinking back on the past two weeks, she convinced herself that the friends deal with Ranma had made him realize that he didn't want to be with her. Stalking through the house, she headed up to her room.  
  
Kasumi heard the heavy footsteps, and came to see what was going on. "Akane? Is something wrong?"  
  
"I don't want to talk about it. I need to go do some homework. Excuse me, please." She said as she pushed gently past Kasumi. She wasn't going to cry. She wasn't going to do that route again. If Ranma wasn't man enough to tell her outright, if he wanted to take the cowards way of showing her that he wasn't interested, that was his loss. Her fingers twitched madly, wanting to reach for her mallet, but she wasn't going to give Ranma, Shampoo or Ukyo the satisfaction. No doubt it was what they were expecting, that Tomboy Akane would fly into a jealous rage. Well, that wasn't her anymore. Going into her room, she grabbed a textbook and paper, and started copiously making notes. She'd study hard, get into a good college, and get out of this town, away from everyone that was a painful memory of her past with Ranma.  
  
"And now, I suppose he still expects us to be friends... like nothing happened. Whatever. He wants it that way, that's fine. I'll be civil to him. But that's about all he can expect." Akane sighed. She had really enjoyed the new found closeness that they had discovered. It was going to be hard to give that up. Thinking about it a bit more carefully, she thought maybe they still could be friends - eventually. It's not like she had any real claims on him, other than the stupid engagement their fathers had put together. Ranma was free after all to pick whom he wanted to be with. She had just kind of hoped it would be her.  
  
Back at the front door, Ranma looked after Akane worriedly. "She didn't even ask for an explanation! Not like I owed her one - nothing was going on. Not my fault I met up with Ukyo on the way home. And besides, who's she to look hurt? She's the one actually dating other people!" Looking around, he saw that Ukyo and Shampoo had already left. "Huh. That's weird. Shampoo didn't even say hi or nothing. And Ukyo didn't say anything about leaving."  
  
Ranma walked into the house slowly. Kasumi was still in the hallway, looking up the stairs where Akane had gone.  
  
"Ranma - is something wrong with you and Akane? She seems a bit upset about something."  
  
"No, nothing's wrong. Your sister has just decided to let me know not so subtly that she's not interested in me anymore. She had a date yesterday you know."  
  
"Oh? I didn't know that. She didn't go out."  
  
"Yeah, only cause I chased the guy out of here before she saw him." Ranma sighed.  
  
"Oh, Ranma... are you sure? The two of you seemed to be getting along so well. Shouldn't you say something to her? Ask her about it?" Kasumi said in a concerned voice.  
  
"What's the point, Kasumi? She's made her choice, and I'm not it. I just have to accept her decision and get on with my life. I might not like it, but if she only wants to be friends, then that's what I'll have to accept. I've got to be a man, and not stand in her way."  
  
"Did you want me to talk to Akane for you? I'm sure it would help."  
  
"Nah. She didn't let me know about the date - I only found out when that guy showed up, so if you went to talk to her about it, she might think I was checking up on her or something."  
  
"Okay, if that's what you want."  
  
Ranma sat down heavily on the stairs. "No! It's not what I want! But obviously it's what she wants. Part of me wants to go ripping up those stairs and yell at her to tell me what's going on, but that would just make things worse, wouldn't it?" He said defeatedly.  
  
Dinnertime was strained. Both Ranma and Akane sat there, making small talk. Whatever camaraderie they had managed to gain was lost. Each would occasionally throw glances at the other, with eyes full of confusion and hurt. When they would catch eyes though, they'd force an expression of amicableness on their features.  
  
The next day was a little easier. A bit of teasing here and there from both parties started to melt down the wall that had suddenly been erected over the past few days. The closeness they had obtained wasn't back, but it was a start.  
  
*I guess we can be friends...* Akane thought to herself. *It's better than nothing I suppose. At least, until he decides who he's going to be with. I wouldn't be able to stand seeing him with either Ukyo or Shampoo. It would hurt too much, and plus, I just know that which ever girl it was would be laughing at me every chance she got, rubbing it in.*  
  
Neither of them dared to broach the topic that was in each of their heads. It would have been too much for their fragile friendship to bear. But each of them was thinking the same thing:  
  
*Why didn't you just tell me, instead of shoving it in my face the way you did?*   
  
A few days later, Akane approached Kasumi in the kitchen. "Kasumi? You know how you asked me if I wanted to talk about it? Well, would now be a good time?" She looked at her older sister pleadingly.  
  
"Of course, Akane. Let me just put some tea on, and we'll sit down and have a good chat." After doing what she had said, she sat down at the little table in the kitchen and motioned Akane towards the other chair.  
  
Akane sat down, with a large sigh. "It's Ranma. When isn't it Ranma? He doesn't want me THAT way, Kasumi."  
  
"Oh, but..." Kasumi managed to get out before Akane continued.  
  
"No, it's true. He's decided he only wants to be friends. Shampoo showed up here the other day, and filled me in. I wish Ranma could have said it himself, although I don't know that it would have hurt any less."  
  
"Akane, I really don't think that..." Once again, Kasumi was interrupted by her sister.  
  
"But, we're still friends, and that's what counts right?" Akane's smile didn't quite reach her eyes. "If I can't have him exactly as I wanted, I can at least have this for right now. He's made his decision and I'll have to accept it."  
  
Kasumi began to feel an odd sense of deja-vu. Something was not quite right with this picture. Taking a deep breath, she started to talk. "Akane, I talked to Ranma a few days ago, and..."  
  
"He told you? He hasn't even come out and said it to me... Seems like he's just going to leave it this way - showing it with actions, not words." Akane sighed wearily. "It's not as hard as I thought though - other than that first bit when I found out of course, but it's getting better." She stood up abruptly. "Thanks for the talk, Kasumi. I feel a bit better about it all. You're right, a friendship is nothing to throw away, just because feelings don't go farther on one side. Thanks for the advice." She started to walk towards the door.  
  
"Akane, please, there's something you need to hear..." But it was too late. Akane had already left the kitchen. "Oh my..." Something was going on. And in Kasumi's household, if something was going on, she was going to find out about it sooner or later.  
  
That evening, as she was washing up the dishes, she looked out the window. Nabiki was in the backyard, which was unusual, considering that normally she'd be in her room, going over her various financial books. What was even more unusual was that she was talking to a group of people, including Shampoo and Ukyo. Her curiosity getting the better of her, Kasumi opened the window a crack, and turned off the water in order to hear what Nabiki was saying.  
  
"People, people! One at a time. Now, if you'll just all line up, nice and organized, you'll get your money. I have to say, job well done! Thank you very much for your co-operation."  
  
A young man called out from the crowd. "And our debt is forgotten?"  
  
"That was the deal. You do me a favor, I do you a favor. Plus, I'm giving you a bonus, since it didn't take anywhere near as long as I thought it might to break those two up."  
  
"This better have worked, sugar." Said Ukyo. "You promised that Ranma honey would be free after this for me to work my consoling magic on."  
  
"Not you, Shampoo be one to console Husband!" Called a purple haired Amazon a few people back in the line."  
  
Nabiki quickly squelched the fight that looked about to start. "Details like that is not my concern. What happens from here on in is up to you. Just don't do it around here. So, who's first? Ah, Juro. Great job, baby. Ever think about the stage as a career? So, let's see. Debt of 12500 yen, erased. Payment of 5000 yen, here you go. Next!" Rapidly, she changed figures in her books, while handing out various sums of money.  
  
Kasumi stood in the kitchen in shock. Nabiki? She shook her head. She wasn't really all that surprised, she supposed. It had been obvious that Nabiki was extremely mad at Ranma for coming back. But still, to go to these kind of lengths, and at the expense of her sister's own happiness. It wasn't right. Shaking herself loose from the turmoil running through her at the sight of her sister paying off people, she looked out the window. Nabiki had taken care of all her business, and was seeing the last of the accomplices out the gate. Dusting off her hands, she smiled happily, and headed for the house.  
  
Kasumi quickly ducked her head away from the window. Trembling, she sat down. Just as quickly, she stood back up. Untying her apron, and hanging it neatly on its hook, she left the kitchen, just in time to see Nabiki enter her room and shut the door. Purposefully, she climbed the stairs and knocked sharply on the bedroom door.  
  
"Who is it?" Nabiki called from inside.  
  
"It's me, Kasumi - can I come in?"  
  
"I'm a little busy right now, can it wait?" Was the reply.  
  
Kasumi opened the door and walked in. With uncharacteristic anger, she said "No, it can't. You and I have to have a talk. Now." She shut the door behind her.  
  
End Chapter Seven  
  
  
-You know, I'm really not happy with how I portrayed Nabiki in this fic. Although she can be mercenary, and cold at times, I like her character. I didn't mean to write her this way - it just happened. And then it was a question of - do I go back and change it, or work with it? So, I worked with it, and coming up next, obviously, is a confrontation between her and Kasumi. Anyways, hope you liked it, R&R please! 


	8. Chapter Eight

-Sorry for the length of time between chapters - I started this so many times and had the most awful writers block with it. Every time I'd actually get somewhere on it, I'd read it over and think "No, no, no" and delete it and start over. Thanks for all the great reviews you've given me on this story!  
  
-Disclaimer: Rumiko Takahashi is the creative genius behind the Ranmaverse. (heh - no silly disclaimer this time)  
  
  
Better Left Unspoken  
  
Nabiki sighed and closed the manga that she was reading. Setting it down on her desk, she looked at Kasumi. "What was destroyed now?" After seeing a look of confusion pass over Kasumi's face, Nabiki continued. "The only time people say to me that they need to talk, they're either a. Wanting money for some scheme or b. Wanting money to fix something that got broken around here due to a certain sex-changing loser I won't name. So, owing to the fact that I doubt you'd be pulling a scheme, that leaves only b."  
  
"Nothing is broken, and for the other, we all know that you're the only one in this household that would be conniving enough for scheming." Kasumi shot at her sister.  
  
"Look, Kasumi. My little business ventures, as I like to call them - they keep us in this house. They make the money you use to buy groceries. Money makes the world go round, and money keeps the Tendo's in the black. So, if you don't mind, spare me the little motherly lecture. I'm having a really good day right now, and I don't feel like having it ruined." Nabiki turned back to reach for her manga.  
  
"A good day?" Kasumi whispered. "A good day?" Her voice starting to rise, she looked at Nabiki. "What horrible thing happened to you, Nabiki, where you would consider hurting your baby sister and making her heart break again would be a good day? How can you say that makes you happy?"  
  
Nabiki smirked. "Well, look who suddenly got a spine..."  
  
Kasumi interrupted. "Don't change the topic! You know exactly what I'm talking about - I saw you in the backyard!" Tears of anger filled her eyes. "Akane is your sister! Why would you do this to her?"  
  
A glint of surprise appeared in Nabiki's eyes, but was quickly snuffed out. Thinking fast, she replied. "I don't know what you "think" you saw, but let me tell you, whatever you're thinking I did, you're wrong. Just finishing up some loose ends with my latest dealings was all I was doing. And besides, didn't you know, it's rude to spy on people."  
  
"I didn't just see you, I heard you - I heard you say what you had those people do! Nabiki! You paid people to drive Ranma and Akane apart - how could you be so cruel, so thoughtless?"  
  
"Kasumi, you don't know what you're talking about." Nabiki said a bit nervously. "I did it for Akane - it was for her own good."  
  
*SLAP!!*  
  
Shocked, both the girls took steps back. Kasumi's hands flew to her mouth to cover the gasp that had wrenched its way from her throat. Nabiki sat down hard on her bed; her own hand reaching up to tentatively touch her cheek where Kasumi had slapped her.  
  
"K...Kasumi..." That was the only thing she could say. For once in her life, Nabiki Tendo was speechless. Her sister had hit her. Kasumi, more a mother than a sister, had raised a hand in anger against her. Kasumi, whom she couldn't remember ever getting the least bit upset, was mad enough at her to do this. She choked back a sob.  
  
Kasumi falteringly reached out a hand towards her sister, but drew it back. That last step of violence had broken her anger, but she was still sad and upset. Steeling her resolve, she took a deep breath. "Nabiki. I'm sorry I hit you, but I'd be lying if I said that you didn't deserve it. What you did to Ranma and Akane was wrong and horrible. They didn't deserve that from you."  
  
Nabiki flared up. "Ok, maybe not Akane - I didn't like doing this to her, no matter what you may think - but Ranma deserved it!"  
  
"Why would you think that, Nabiki - hasn't he shown since he's been back how much Akane means to him? He's obviously grown up - you shouldn't hold his past against him when he's made such an effort to change himself."  
  
"Oh, yeah, now he's being all nice and Prince Charming - but I know him. Sooner or later, he won't be able to help it - he'll start right back where he was before - with the girlfriends, and the insults, pulling Akane along on a string, giving her hope and then crushing it. And I WON'T let that happen!" Nabiki spat out, contempt in her eyes.  
  
"But Nabiki, is that really your decision to make? I think our baby sister is old enough to make her own decisions, whether they're right or wrong."  
  
"NO!" Nabiki shouted. "No, she's not old enough - with what happened the last time, isn't it obvious that she's not? She fell apart, and you know who had to pick up the pieces? Me! Daddy was useless, Mr. Saotome couldn't help anyone if they explained to him how to do it, and you, you were too busy in your dream world to even see what was going on!"  
  
"Oh!" Kasumi cried, taken aback at the vehemence she could hear in her sisters voice. Backing towards the door, she tried to keep the tears from escaping, but it was too late. Whirling around, she fumbled at the door handle, trying to escape the poisonous hatred that seemed to be flowing out Nabiki.  
  
Nabiki, crying with great hiccoughing sobs, watched as her sister tried to get away from her. She wanted to reach out and ask Kasumi to hold her, to tell her everything would be okay, but she couldn't. Because it wouldn't. She knew what she had said was not the truth - Kasumi had helped, with her quiet ways, but it was too late to take back what she had spoken. Wasn't it? Anyone looking at Nabiki would have been hard-pressed to believe that this tearful girl was the same one that commandeered an army of obedient workers, that had her peers under her thumb. It was almost as if she had grown younger by 5 years.  
  
"Kasumi... don't go... I'm... I'm sorry!" Bawling now, she threw herself at the other girl and held on as if clasping a life preserver.  
  
"Why, Nabiki, why? Please, explain it to me, help me understand why you did this? I don't understand, why aren't you happy for Akane, that she found happiness with Ranma finally?" Kasumi said, hugging her sister back.  
  
Tears running down both their faces, the two girls sank to the floor. Kasumi slowly rocked her sister back and forth, much like their mother had done when they were younger. She knew that Nabiki had stuff to say, things that had been pent up inside her for too long. She knew too that she would listen, that she would have to be the serene Kasumi again, the one that people could talk to without fear of judgment.  
  
Slowly, years of hidden feelings made their way out of the Ice Queen of Nerima. How she had resented the Saotome's coming in the first place, and wrecking havoc on their once calm household. How she saw the family's finances ebbing away with the costs to repair the damages that the two had brought with their coming. How the only way she knew to cope was to retreat behind an unbreakable wall of coolness, only thinking of extracting money from those she knew, for some immeasurable amount of comfort.  
  
"And then, he was gone, and things were going back to the way they were before - before they came, and I was happy! Kasumi, I was happy to see Akane in pain - Oh, God, that sounds so sick... I was happy because I knew she'd get over it, and, and we'd be a family again, and I wouldn't have to worry about her anymore, that she'd be hurt or worse."  
  
Kasumi sat there, with Nabiki in her arms, making little reassuring shh noises, with her cheek pressed against the top of her sister's head. She could feel Nabiki's body slowly relaxing as all her pent up emotions were released. Kasumi could understand how torn Nabiki must have felt during her years of closing herself off to the world. In fact, it was a bit how she had felt, since she herself had hidden behind a different type of wall, but a wall nonetheless, one of oblivion and forced cheerfulness.  
  
Nabiki's outburst continued. Everything that had ever bothered her in the last 2 years seemed to be coming to the surface. She only knew that it felt that if she didn't talk about it now, nothing would change. Slowly though, her words trickled down. Only the last, most difficult thing to admit was left.  
  
"It just seemed so unfair to me - everyone had someone that loved them, except me! You had Doctor Tufo - don't deny it, you know how he felt about you, even though he left, Akane had Ranma, and every other boy chasing after her, even Ranma had people who were in love with him whether he was a boy or a girl. But me! No one has ever looked at me like that before - I wanted someone for me, who liked me. Sure there was that time Kuno had thought... but I knew it wasn't real - I played along, cause it felt so nice to be wanted, but it wasn't the same and I knew it. So the only thing I knew to do was to make sure that someone else would be as lonely as I was - first by making sure that the wedding wouldn't go off, and now this. Oh, Kasumi, I'm the worst sister ever! I hate being the Ice Queen - it hurts to hear people say that, you know, but it's the only thing I'm good at - that, and making money." Wrenching herself away from Kasumi, she buried her face in her hands, and shook with sobs.  
  
"Oh... Nabiki..." Kasumi grabbed hold of Nabiki's hands and slowly drew them away from her face. Looking her sister in her eyes, letting her own tears fall, she smiled. "Well, you didn't exactly do things the right way, but you did do them out of love - love for your family, which is an honorable trait, even when used wrongly. And you will find that someone for you - you just have to not be afraid to show the world the real Nabiki. Only then can a boy find you and like you for who you are. Now come on, smile for me, don't you feel a bit better now?"  
  
Nabiki managed a small smile, although with her tear soaked face and her swollen eyes, it looked more like a grimace. "Yes." She said in a small voice. "I feel better, but still so horrible at the same time! How can I look Akane in the eyes, knowing what I did? How can you still love me?"  
  
"I will always love you Nabiki. You're my sister - nothing will ever change that, no matter what you did or do. But you've got to do something about what you did, you know that, don't you dear?"  
  
"I know... But what can I do? What will I say? They'll hate me! They should hate me! I can't tell them what I did! I can't!" Looking up at Kasumi, Nabiki saw a frown appear on her older sister's face. She sighed. "Self loathing isn't gonna cut it, is it?"  
  
Suddenly Kasumi laughed. Her giggle filled the air, clear as the tinkling of bells. Hearing the sound, Nabiki felt as though all could be right with the world, that there was no problem she couldn't overcome.  
  
"I'm sorry for laughing, dear, but it was so nice to hear a bit of the Nabiki I know and love with that last statement! You'll know what to say when it comes to it - that brain that I know you have will help you, and your heart will too."  
  
Nabiki sat up and wiped her eyes. "Kasumi, I think I'd like to be alone for a bit - think things over. I've got some major explaining to do, and a lot of crow to eat."  
  
"Of course, dear. If you need me there when you talk to them, let me know."  
  
"Thanks, but I think this is something I need to do on my own." She watched her sister get up and go to the door. As Kasumi left, she called after her. "Kasumi? I love you."  
  
"I love you too, dear." Kasumi softly shut the door behind her.  
  
As soon as Nabiki heard the click of the door, she sprang up. If there was ever time for a plan, it was now. And planning was what she did best, wasn't it? She didn't know if Akane and Ranma would ever be able to forgive her, she thought she had maybe pushed her luck after the wedding fiasco, but she had hope that they'd at least listen to her, and be able to get past what she had done. It was up to her to fix what she had broken. As long as she hadn't broken it beyond repair. A glint of the old Nabiki appeared in her expression. Ranma and Akane would get together, or she'd die trying.  
  
After going to the bathroom quickly to wash her face, she returned to her room and sat down at her desk. Pulling open a drawer, she grabbed a pen and notebook, and started scribbling down notes. Feeling better than she had in a long time, an advertising jingle ran through her head as she wrote.  
  
"Corsage, or maybe flowers - 1800 yen."  
  
"Movie they'll both enjoy - 3500 yen."  
  
"Dinner at a semi-romantic restaurant (no point in over-doing it) - 10000 yen."  
  
"Enough sake to keep Daddy and Mr. Saotome occupied so they don't bother them - 5000 yen."  
  
"The look on Akane's and Ranma's faces when they come home from the perfect first date - priceless."  
  
Grabbing a calculator, she totaled the amount, and checked it against some figures in another book. Making a few adjustments to both books, she finally sat back, satisfied.  
  
"Well, not too bad - I'll still be in the black! Not by much, true, after paying off everyone..." Nabiki broke off, cringing at the memory. "Well, even if I turn over a new leaf, no reason I can't find other amusing ways to make money. After all, I did not too badly before Ranma came to town. So! Plan Get Them Together is a go!" She smiled.  
  
Then she groaned. "Urgh. Except for one small, make that massive, problem. I've still got to fess up to them." Slowly putting her books and pen away, she pushed her chair from her desk and stood up. Going to her door, she opened it and stepped out. Feeling somewhat like a prisoner going to an execution, she walked the short distance to Akane's closed door and raised her hand to knock. Noticing it shaking, she whispered to herself. "Nerves of steel, baby. Come on, Nabs, it's now or never." Before she could think twice, she rapped on the door. Fighting down the urge to run, she waited.  
  
"Who is it?" Came a small, sad voice from inside.  
  
"Nabiki - can I come in?"  
  
After Akane had replied that yes, she could, Nabiki opened the door. Akane was sitting at her window, just staring out into the darkness of the night. Taking a deep breath, Nabiki opened her mouth.  
  
"Akane, I've got something to say, and I'm going to say it, and you're going to not like it, and then I'll leave, but you've got to promise me that you'll stop and think about what I said before reacting." The words came out in one big rush.  
  
Akane turned to face her sister. "Nabiki, I know you mean well, and you really helped me the last time, but I think I just need a bit more time before facing reality right now." Tears sprang up in her eyes.  
  
Nabiki shut her eyes. "No, Akane, that's not what I'm here for. It's this..." She spilled out the story to her sister, keeping her eyes clenched tight, not wanting to see the look that she was sure her baby sister would be giving her. "...And I'm sorry, you don't know how sorry, and I want to make it up to you, and I don't know if I can, but I want you to be with him, he makes you happy, and I was wrong - he's a good guy. And right now, I know that it's not going to make you like me at all, but I want to treat you two to a night out, for your first real date, and I want to make it special..." Her voice trailed off into silence as she finished. Her hands suddenly hurt, and she realized that she had had then balled into tight fists at her sides, her nails pressing into her palms. Unclenching them, she slowly opened her eyes. Keeping her eyes on the ground, she backed quickly to the door, bowed once and left, shutting the door fast.  
  
Hearing her sister's sobs on the other side of the door, Nabiki cried along with Akane. To her immense relief, Akane didn't come bursting through the door, screaming bloody murder. She had expected that could happen. Slowly, her heart rate returned to normal. One down, one to go. And she had no clue how Ranma would take what she had to say. Her only consolation was that Ranma didn't like to hit girls. Once more, she began her walk of the condemned, this time to the dojo, where Ranma had been spending most of his time lately.  
  
After basically going through the same motions and speech that she had in Akane's room, Nabiki looked up at Ranma. She didn't know what to expect, but braced herself.  
  
Ranma's only reaction at first was to look her in the eyes, his blue eyes boring like steel into her soul. Then turning away, he thrust his fist into the nearest practise dummy, completely demolishing it like it was a paper box, rather than the wood and sawdust it was made of. "You can leave now." His voice, low and tense, reverberated through the room.  
  
Shaking, Nabiki did as he asked. Going to her room, she sat on her bed, waiting. She had asked each of them to let her know somehow if they would accept her offer of paying for a date. There wasn't anything else she could do right now but sit and wait.  
  
Later, at two different times, pieces of paper were slid under Nabiki's bedroom door. Both notes said that yes, they would accept her offer of paying for a date.  
  
In three different areas of the Tendo household that night, three different people smiled the same smile. A smile filled with sadness, regret, relief and happiness.  
  
End Chapter Eight  
  
  
-Phew! This was an incredibly hard chapter to write, and I really don't know if it's any good. Please feel free to make comments on what you thought - no need to be mean please, but I would really appreciate hearing your opinions on this one. Horrible OOC'ness from both Nabiki and Kasumi, I know, but I couldn't get it written any other way. Anyways, next chapter is the big date, but not quite all is bliss - after all, I haven't dealt completely with Shampoo and Ukyo yet... R&R please! 


	9. Chapter Nine

-It's been a while, and I apologize for the length of time between chapters. Next chapter should be out soon, and I am committed to finishing this story, since it drives me nuts when I'm reading a fic and I come to the end and realize that it's not finished and never going to be finished. Lots of happy teddy bear feelings in this chapter - next chapter will be a bit more of an action one. Hope you enjoy! Thanks to my reviewers, you are great! You really made me take a better look at my last chapter, and I'm happy with it now - it looks like it got across to you what I wanted it to.  
  
-Disclaimer: If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around, does Ranma and co. belong to me? No? Sigh... didn't think so.  
  
Better Left Unspoken  
  
Akane stood in front of her closet, a frown on her face. She had absolutely nothing to wear. Nothing at all. Picking out a dress at random, she spun around and looked at herself in her full-length mirror, holding the dress up to her body.  
  
"Yeesh. Why not just wear a sign saying "Hi, I'm Akane, and I'm 10."" She sighed in frustration. "I can't believe I don't have anything in here!" Throwing the dress on her bed in disgust, she sank into a chair. "There's no time to go shopping either. I guess I could go ask Nabiki if she's got anything, but I still don't really want to talk to her... At least she's staying behind the scenes of paying for this date."  
  
It was true - Nabiki, out of consideration for their feelings about her, had kept out of their way, slipping movie tickets, reservation details and some money under Ranma's door. Akane still didn't know what to think about what Nabiki had done. It's not that she was surprised that Nabiki had pulled such a stunt, it was more that she would have never expected her sister to do it to her. Forgiveness would come in time, she knew, and she had tried to let Nabiki see that although things were awkward between them now, they wouldn't always be.  
  
"No. I'm not going to dwell on that right now. Tonight is about Ranma and me. Our date! Our first date!" She spun around happily, only to catch a glimpse of the dress on her bed. Stopping in mid twirl she sighed. "Yeah. Our first date and I'm going to look like a little kid." Hearing a knock at her door, she went to answer it.  
  
Kasumi stood on the other side, a happy smile on her face. "Did you need any help getting ready, Akane? Dinner is cooking itself tonight, since it's nothing big with you and Ranma being out for the evening."  
  
"Oh, Kasumi! I'd love your help!" Grabbing her sister by the hand, she pulled her into the bedroom and shut the door. Plopping down on her bed, she looked at Kasumi. "I'm so nervous! I'm so not ready! I'm going to end up making a fool of myself - I'll probably drop my popcorn on the floor, spill my water at the restaurant, who knows what new heights Akane the Klutz will go to tonight!" She groaned in mock despair.  
  
"Sweetheart, just relax. Ranma wouldn't care if you fell flat on your face and you know it. But why aren't you getting ready? It's not that long until you have to leave for the theater."   
  
"Agh. Don't remind me, I know, I know. But you take a look in that closet and tell me what you see!" Akane pointed accusingly at her clothes.  
  
Kasumi looked at Akane's wardrobe and frowned. "Well... I see a bunch of gi's, some T-shirts, blouses, and some nice dresses. What's wrong, Akane? Did I use a bad batch of detergent? Did the last load of clothes not get clean? Did I put something away in the wrong drawer?"  
  
Akane rolled her eyes. "My sister, the housekeeper. No, Kasumi, not that! The fact that I have nothing to wear! Nothing that Ranma is going to take one look at and not be able to think!"  
  
Kasumi giggled. "Oh Akane. Not to be cliched, but you could wear a potato sack, and he still..." She broke off as Akane interupted.  
  
"But I don't want to wear a potato sack! I want to wear something drop dead! And everything in my closet just screams pre-teen! Why did I buy so many clothes with Hello Kitty logo's? Why?" She looked on the verge of panicking.  
  
Kasumi took another look into Akane's closet. Holding a finger up to her mouth, she tapped it thoughtfully. Pulling out a few articles of clothing, she mixed and matched, taking a piece from one outfit, and putting it with a belt from another and so on. After only a minute of flurried action, she turned back to Akane. "How about this?"  
  
Akane gasped. Incredulously she looked at the outfit. Somehow Kasumi had managed to create a stunning outfit from the dredges of her clothes. She quickly put it on and looked in the mirror. She was wearing a dusty rose half bolero jacket over a pale cream silk tank top. A short, but not too short, flared skirt amazingly matched the color of the jacket almost to a tee. Topping off the outfit was a delicate gold chain belt, and a matching necklace and earrings. (A/N - sorry about the poor description here - I'm so not a clothes girl - jeans and t-shirts all the way.)  
  
"Oh my god, Kasumi! It's perfect! How did you do that? I've been staring at my closet for the last hour and a half, and I never even thought of putting these together! Thank you so much!" Akane was bubbling with happiness.  
  
Kasumi smiled at her sister's exuberance. "Now sit down, and I'll do your hair and makeup." Brushing Akane's hair, she continued. "I've always enjoyed creating outfits - fashion design is like a little hobby with me I suppose."  
  
"A hobby? Kasumi, you could easily get a job doing this - in a store, or as a fashion consultant!"  
  
"Oh Akane, I really don't think so - it's just something I do for fun. Besides, I'm much too busy around here, keeping the household. This is what I really love. Making sure my family and guests are comfortable and secure."  
  
Akane turned in her chair and hugged Kasumi around her waist. "And we don't say thank you enough, Kasumi. I hope you know, even if we don't say it, we do appreciate it." Looking up, she smiled at her older sister.  
  
"Of course, dear. Now, be a good girl, and turn around, so I can finish up." Kasumi said with a motherly tone. Quickly she finished styling Akane's hair and did her makeup.  
  
Akane, now that she was all ready, suddenly looked scared. "Kasumi, what if things don't go right? What if they get messed up? What if we can't find anything to say to each other? What if..."  
  
Kasumi quickly broke in. "If you think that, that will be what happens. Just be confident! Now, Ranma is going to be here any minute, and I've got to get back to the kitchen, so you have a good time, and enjoy your night. And when you come home, you can tell me all about it - well, except the parts that are too good to tell." Kasumi gave a little wink at Akane and left.  
  
Akane took a deep breath. Trying to relax, she sat and waited. Thankfully, she only had to wait a few minutes before there was a knock at her door. Opening it, she looked at Ranma. In return, he looked back at her. Standing there for a minute, they just drank each other in. Finally Ranma spoke.  
  
"Ak...Akane." He stopped, his voice suddenly cracking, and cleared his throat. "Akane, you look... really nice." Under his breath he whispered "Beautiful".  
  
Akane shyly smiled. "Thank you Ranma, you look good too." And he did - dressed in a pair of semi casual charcoal grey pants, with a matching blazer. His shirt was a light blue chinese silk.  
  
"Umm, this is for you." Ranma opened a little box and pulled out a single cream colored rose corsage. "I didn't know what color you'd be wearing, but I figured this would be ok."  
  
"Oh, Ranma, thank you." Not having the courage to ask him to pin it on for her, she did it herself. Thankfully, she managed not to prick herself with the pin. "So... I guess we should get going."  
  
"Yeah, we probably should. The taxi should be outside by now. I figured we could walk, but it's kinda easier to do it this way, so that we don't run into anyone on the way." An outsider to the conversation might have thought that he was embarrassed to be seen in public with her, but Akane understood. Not wanting to mention the other girls and guys, she simply nodded in agreement.  
  
Ranma held out his arm for her to take, and blushing slightly she did. They walked downstairs and out the door to the waiting car. The ride to the movie theater was driven in mostly silence, the two of them just content to sit there, occasionally looking at the other person. It didn't take long to get to their destination, and they got out of the taxi. Ranma quickly paid the driver, and they approached the ticket booth window.  
  
"Well, considering Nabiki picked the movie, I guess we don't need to decide what we're going to see." Ranma said.  
  
"Which one are we going to anyways? There's a few playing that I want to see, hopefully it's one of them." Akane replied. She hoped that whichever one it was, it was one they'd both enjoy. She didn't want one of them to be sitting through a flick, thinking they'd rather be somewhere else.  
  
Glancing down at the tickets in his hand, Ranma realized he hadn't looked to see which film they had passes to either. "Huh. Not too bad, looks like she found something we both might like. You wanted to see Beavis and Butthead Do America, right?" (See author's note below)  
  
A look of disgust passed across Akane's face. "You're not serious? That's the one she picked? Ranma, I don't want to see that one. I'm sorry, I want this to go well, but I really can't stand that show."  
  
"Nope, wasn't serious." Ranma laughed as he dodged a playful swat aimed at his head.  
  
"Not nice, Ranma." Akane pretended to pout. "Now come on, tell me which movie?" She reached for the tickets.  
  
"Okay, okay... we're going to see Men in Black." Ranma grinned. He loved action films, especially one's with lots of special effects.  
  
"Aww. I wanted to see The First Wives Club, not some dumb movie about space aliens." She broke into giggles at the look on Ranma's face. "Hey, two can play at that game, you know. Seriously, MiB is one of the movies I've been wanting to see."  
  
"Good. Was thinking there that the man-bashing thing was all coming back to you, Akane." This time he wasn't quite fast enough and got a light punch in the arm. "Ouch. Tomboy."  
  
"Oh, like that really hurt. Come on, let's go in - I want to get some popcorn before the movie starts." Grabbing Ranma's sleeve, she tugged him forward.  
  
After getting their snacks, they settled in to watch the movie. As the theater darkened, each of them somehow became more aware of the other person sitting beside them. Although they were enjoying the show, their thoughts were never far away from each other.  
  
*Should I put my arm around her? How do I put my arm around her? Will I get slapped if I put my arm around her?*  
  
*Should I -accidently- hold his hand while reaching for some popcorn? Maybe I could grab on to him during a scary part. Damn, this isn't a horror movie though! Why isn't he putting his arm around me?*  
  
Akane tentatively leaned against Ranma. Looking down at her, he smiled, and adjusted his body so that she fit comfortably against his side. Slipping an arm around her shoulders, he popped a piece of popcorn into his mouth and grinned.  
  
Just as the hero of the movie was helping with the birth of an alien baby, an overly cheery voice boomed right by their ears. Jumping apart in surprise, they looked between them.  
  
"What a surprise, running into you here, Ranma honey!" Ukyo flirted brazenly. Glancing at Akane, she said in a cool tone. "Oh, hi, Akane." Scrambling over the seat, she plunked herself down beside Ranma. "Mind if I join you?"  
  
"Well, actually, Ukyo..." Akane started to say.  
  
"Oh cool! I didn't think you would. I love this movie, I've seen it a couple times already." Ukyo said as she sat as close as she could to the boy beside her.  
  
"I will not hit him, it is not his fault. I will not hit him, it is not his fault." Ranma could hear Akane whispering this to herself. As relieved as this made him, he still had no better idea of what to do. He didn't know what it would take to get Ukyo to realize that he just wasn't interested in her the way she wanted him to be. Sure, he could cause a scene, but that wasn't his style. Of course, when he thought about it, he had no style at all when it came to dealing with the opposite sex. Glancing at Akane, he saw she was looking at him with a pleading look in her eye. Taking a chance, he mouthed the word "Help" to her, and jerked his head lightly in Ukyo's direction, rolling his eyes.  
  
Akane's eyes shone with a bit of humor and gratefulness. Ranma was actually asking for her help on this. That bit of knowledge gave her the confidence she needed. Snuggling up even closer to Ranma than she had been before, she very obviously put her hand on his leg, knowing that Ukyo could see her every move. Sighing contentedly, she looked at Ukyo and smiled as nicely as she could. "Ukyo, we're glad to see you and all, but we're actually on a date at the moment, and would like a bit of privacy. Maybe next weekend we can all go see a movie together?"  
  
Ukyo suddenly sat up very straight. Looking at Ranma, she stuttered. "R... Ranma, honey? A... a date? But, I thought, that is, you guys aren't..." She stopped, knowing if she said anymore, she'd let on that she had been scheming to separate them, not knowing that they already knew about it. She stared at the two teens, silently begging with her eyes for Ranma to deny it, to say that he wouldn't go on a date with an uncute tomboy like Akane.  
  
"Yep! On a date with my special girl!" Ranma grinned. "We've had a few troubles the last couple of days, but we got through them together, so we're celebrating with a night on the town." Ranma pretended to be oblivious to Ukyo's hurt. He didn't like it, but what else could he do? Any sign of concern for her would be misinterpreted as more than it was meant to. Putting his arm back around Akane, he pulled her closer.  
  
"Oh..." Ukyo quickly pulled herself together. "Whoops! Just remembered, I've got to pick up some supplies for the restaurant. Keeps me hopping you know. Anyways, I've gotta go - yeah, movie next weekend - let me get back to you on that - busy, busy." Realizing she was starting to babble, she got up, her eyes smarting. Moving quickly to the aisle, she darted up the ramp to the exit. Stumbling out of the theater, her eyes adjusting slowly to the different light, she made a quick turn into a nearby alley and burst into the tears she had tried unsuccessfully to contain. She had lost. She knew it. When it came down to it, she had always known. It didn't make it hurt any less though. The worst part of her crying jag over, she started to walk towards her shop, slow tears still making their way down her cheeks. Not bothering to wipe them away, Ukyo continued walking, staring up at the dusky sky and the sunset.  
  
*Well, at least they still want to be friends...* This last thought only made her tears flow harder. What a pile of crap - spouting platitudes at herself, like it was going to make her feel better. Entering the restaurant and going up to her room, her eyes fell on a pamphlet that she had tossed there a day ago. Picking it up, she suddenly realized exactly why Kasumi had thought she might want to take a look at it.  
  
"Looking for experienced okonomiyaki chefs to teach everything from beginner to haute cuisine in new school of cooking." Ukyo read the first line out loud, seeing if she liked how it sounded. It sounded a bit better than it had the other day. It paid well, was something she liked doing, and best of all, it wasn't in Nerima. Not that it was far away, but far enough where she would be able to get on with her life. And it was only a 4 month term, so she wouldn't have to sell the shop - she could come back. Picking up a pen, she began filling in the application.  
  
Back at the movie, Ranma had moved a bit like he planned to get up to follow Ukyo, but as Akane reached for him to hold him back, she found it wasn't necessary as he settled back down. Looking at him quizzically, she asked him why he hadn't gotten up.  
  
"If I do, it's just going to give her false hope. And that's what I've always done. I've never been able to tell her or any of the other girls the straight out truth. I've always been afraid of hurting them. And now I have - I've hurt Ukyo. I feel horrible, but it had to end sometime. It wasn't fair to you or her or me. And maybe, eventually, we'll be able to be just friends." Ranma said seriously. "Thanks for helping me out on that one, and keeping cool during it." He glanced down at her hand, still on his leg, and noticed that she still was cozied up to him.  
  
Blushing, Akane started to take her hand away, after all, their little play was over, and she was probably making him really uncomfortable. Before she could, though, he leaned over and whispered in her ear.  
  
"I don't mind if you don't."  
  
Blushing even harder, Akane left her hand there. The remainder of the movie passed all too quickly.  
  
When the lights in the room came on, Ranma reached down and wrapped his fingers in hers, tugging on it to get her to stand up. Walking hand in hand, they left the theater and walked outside.  
  
Since the restaurant was only a few blocks away, they decided to walk. Strolling along at a casual pace, Akane could feel Ranma's eyes continuously darting her way. Finally he said something, just as she was about to ask him if she had something wrong on her clothes or face.  
  
"Akane... There's one thing I've been wondering about. I know that Nabiki planned it so that I would see all kinds of guys calling for you, but... right after that first time, when Juro pretended he was picking you up - you were waiting for someone. And the next few days - every time the phone would ring, you'd jump. Maybe it's none of my business, but who were you waiting for?"  
  
"Oh." Akane looked slightly uncomfortable. "That. I was just hoping to find out something, but it didn't seem to work out, so it's no big deal."  
  
It was clear that she didn't want to talk much about it, so Ranma decided to let it drop, although he wasn't any less curious about it. He just didn't want anything to ruin this night - it had been touch and go when Ukyo had shown up. Keeping a wary eye out for certain Chinese amazons that he didn't want to run into, he was relieved when they made it to the restaurant unscathed and dry.  
  
End Chapter Nine  
  
  
-Well, this chapter was originally supposed to be the whole date, but it was getting really long, so I decided to make it into 2 chapters. I'm halfway through writing the dinner part, but thought I'd share this with you, since it might take a few more days for me to finish that part. And then after the next chapter, only one more and it's done! Heh - when I was writing this one, I brought Ukyo into it and then was stuck for over a week, trying to figure out how to resolve it. I thought about Nabiki showing up, but that didn't work with how I said at the beginning of the chapter that she was staying low profile. So I then decided to let Ranma and Akane work it out themselves - of course, Kasumi helped a bit too in the end.   
  
-As for the part with the movies - since I'm basing this near the end of the manga - approximately 6 months after, I had them going to the movies in 1996/1997, so that's why the films are from that time period. Even though the years the manga ran are way more than the timeline of Ranma. But oh well. And besides, I haven't been to many movies lately, so couldn't think of anything that they'd go see together. =p Read and Review please! 


	10. Chapter Ten

-I'm so so so sorry this chapter took so long to be posted, people. This past month has been an utter mess! I had a car accident (not hurt, but car was totaled), and had to do some serious financial wrangling at the worst possible time of year to get a new one. Then I was sick the entire holiday and wasn't in the mood to write. But I'm all better now, and have wheels, so all is okay in the world of PepsiBeth. Thanks to all my reviewers, and to the people who have sent me emails. I'm glad you're all enjoying this story! This is a nice long chapter for your patience. ^_^  
  
-Disclaimer: I want to own them, but I don't. I can't afford to buy them, so I won't.  
  
  
Better Left Unspoken  
  
Going up to the "Please wait to be seated" sign, Ranma gave the waitress their reservations. Quickly, she seated them at a small table in a quiet part of the restaurant. Handing them each a menu, she filled their water goblets and left to give them a few minutes to decide.  
  
Akane looked around the restaurant. It was fairly new, and she hadn't been there before, but had heard some good things about it. Most of the dinner rush had already come and gone, so the atmosphere was quiet and relaxed. Looking at her menu, she read through the choices, trying to decide what to get. There was a wide variety of choices, most of them being dishes that she hadn't tried before. After all, there wasn't an abundance of Italian restaurants in Nerima. Finally coming to a decision, she closed her menu and placed it on the table.  
  
Ranma also made his choice, and they sat quietly, waiting for their server to come take their order.  
  
"Hi, I'm Antonia, and I'll be your waitress for the evening!" The friendly server spoke in quite good Japanese, with a slight Italian accent. "What can we get for you tonight?" Looking at Akane, she held a pen above her note pad expectantly.  
  
"I'll have the Seafood fettuccine and a small Caesar salad, please." When asked what she would like to drink, she decided to try the raspberry Italian soda.  
  
Ranma's order was a little larger than Akane's. "I'd like to start with a bowl of Minestrone and a large garden salad, and then have the Chicken Cacciatore and the Spaghetti Bolognese. For a drink, I'll try the Italian soda too, but I'd like vanilla for mine."  
  
Antonia quickly wrote all this down, looking a little surprised at the amount that Ranma had ordered, especially after he waved off her caution that the main courses were quite large. She left, returning quickly with a dish of Antipasto and bread and their soda's.  
  
While they waited for their first course, Ranma and Akane talked about the movie, and enjoyed the appetizer.  
  
"So, whaddya think of that mind ray thingie that they have? That'd come in handy around here, that's for sure. Wouldn't mind having one of those to use to get someone's mind off of killing me." All the gadgets that had been in the movie fascinated Ranma. Sure, he knew that it was just special effects, and that it wasn't real, but still... it would be nice.  
  
"Yeah, I have to admit, it would be nice to be able to zap someone halfway through whatever they're doing, and just take off, leaving them in the dust." Akane smiled.  
  
"Might have saved me just a wee bit of trouble." Ranma said sarcastically. His eyes lit up as he saw their server approach the table with the first part of their meal. Rubbing his hands together, he grinned in anticipation.  
  
"Honestly, Ranma. You'd think you hadn't eaten in a month! You're practically drooling!" Akane said, even though she was eyeing the food with a gleam in her eye.  
  
"Mmmpphh. Can't talk. Eating." Ranma set to work on his soup and salad. Akane quickly followed suit, enjoying her salad.  
  
Outside the restaurant, two pairs of eyes watched the teens carefully. One pair narrowed with a crafty look, the other pair opened wide with a determined, stubborn look.  
  
"Shampoo go in now and get husband, Great Grandmother! Violent girl no right to take on date! You wait here, I get him, we take away to China, yes? And then all be happy! Shampoo be happy, Airen be happy once he know he love Shampoo, Great Grandmother be happy, Amazon sisters be happy! Okay, maybe Kitchen destroyer no be too too happy, but Shampoo not care." The purple haired girl leapt to her feet, ready to barge into the restaurant and grab her man.  
  
The tiny, unbelievably old woman next to her reached up and grabbed Shampoo's arm. Pulling her back down with a strength surprising in one so aged, Cologne looked at her descendant. "Shampoo. Calm down. Now is not the time to be rushing in headlong. Have you lost all warrior instincts, child? Look at son-in-law. Although he may seem to be engrossed in his meal, he knows exactly every detail happening around him. No. We must bide our time, patiently waiting."  
  
"But Great Grand..." Shampoo started to say.  
  
"Hush. 3000 years of amazon traditions are ours to use - patience, stealth and cunning will make Ranma your true husband in all eyes. If not tonight, then tomorrow." The crone beckoned with her finger for Shampoo to follow her as she hopped away on her walking stick.  
  
Shampoo sighed heavily and ran quickly after, throwing one last look of intense jealousy towards the couple.  
  
At the table, Akane shivered. Ranma glanced at her, with a questioning look on his face. "It's nothing, I just had the oddest feeling that we were being watched or something, but it's gone now."  
  
"You too, huh? Yeah, I had that feeling for a bit, but if anyone was watching, they decided to leave us alone I guess. Not that I mind. Hey! Food!" Ranma quickly finished his sentence, as their main courses were laid in front of them. He quickly dug in.  
  
Akane smiled. She wished that someday someone - preferably Ranma, would show that much enthusiasm towards something she had cooked, but knowing that she couldn't even stomach what she made, it didn't bother her as much as it had only a few months ago. She too started eating.  
  
The two teens sat in relative silence, each one enjoying their meal, not feeling the need to talk at the moment. Of course Akane knew that if she tried to initiate a conversation, it'd be entirely one-sided, what with how Ranma concentrated on his meals the same way he did everything else - whole heartedly.  
  
When they had finished, Antonia came over and cleared away their plates. Akane decided to pass on dessert, as she was full, but Ranma couldn't resist trying the Tiramisu. When it came, Akane was a little disappointed she had said no to it, but Ranma caught the look on her face.  
  
"Want a bite, Akane?"  
  
"What? Oh, umm, yes please." Akane was startled by Ranma's offer. Expecting to be handed Ranma's fork, she was even more surprised when he scooped up a small bite on his fork and held it out to her. Blushing, she leaned over and slid her mouth over the cutlery, savoring the taste. Her eyes lifted, and she caught Ranma watching her with an odd look on his face. She suddenly noticed that he too was blushing like crazy. Sliding quickly back in her chair, she muttered a quick thank you, trying to disguise her sudden shyness.  
  
"Umm... Akane? You have a bit of cream right there... no, to the left, a little bit more... oh, here. I'll just get it." Ranma reached over and wiped the offending bit of the dessert off Akane's lip with his finger. Then, as if without thinking about it, he popped the finger into his mouth to lick it off.  
  
Akane trembled. *Calm down girl. Stop it. Oh my god... I can't believe he just did that! Oh my god, I can't believe that made me tremble when he did that! Eek!* She hadn't thought it was possible to blush more, but she did. She was almost glad when Ranma had finished eating, and their check came.  
  
Stepping out of the restaurant into the twilight of the evening, the two looked at each other. It seemed too early to put an end to the evening, but what to do now?  
  
"Ranma? Would you maybe... that is... I was thinking, it's such a nice night, we could go for a walk in the park?" Akane asked hopefully, thinking she was being awfully forward.  
  
"Yeah, I'd like that, Akane." Ranma sighed in relief inwardly. He didn't want this night to end - things were going so well. Sure, there had been that incident with Ukyo at the movies, but given his life, that was to be expected.  
  
Walking at an easy stroll, the teens headed towards the park. It wasn't too far to go, and the air was fresh, with a warm breeze blowing through their hair. Inside the park, they walked along the path, not talking, just enjoying the moment. Reaching a fountain, they stood there, Akane looking up at the sky, searching for the first star of the night, Ranma looking at Akane. It seemed almost natural, perfectly normal in fact, for him to reach for her hand. Wrapping his fingers around her small hand, trying not to shake, he squeezed her hand gently.  
  
Akane looked away from the sky with a questioning look. "Did you see the first star, Ranma?"  
  
"Yeah, I do, Akane."  
  
"But... you aren't looking at the sky, Ranma..."   
  
"I know."  
  
Akane could hardly seem to breathe at the look in Ranma's eyes. Nervously, she licked her suddenly dry lips, only causing Ranma's attention to be drawn there. They both, without realizing it, moved closer to the other, their faces drawing closer. Her body seeming almost to hum in anticipation, Akane's eyes slowly flickered shut as she moved even closer. It was finally going to happen! Their first real kiss!  
  
Ranma could feel Akane's breath on his face. Just a few more inches and their lips would meet. He could hardly believe this was happening. He was going to kiss Akane! And she wanted him to! Looking at her face through half closed eyes, he smiled. Uncute tomboy? Not a chance... well, maybe a bit of a tomboy, but that was one of the things he liked best about her. Taking his free arm, he wrapped it gently about her waist so that while still holding hands, they were facing each other. Mentally taking a deep breath, he leaned in and...  
  
"Nihao, Ranma!" Akane was suddenly torn out of Ranma's arms to be replaced by a purple haired blur. Knocked off balance, she almost fell down, but managed to save some dignity by catching her hand on the rim of the fountain. Her senses taking a few moments to come back, she stood there, frozen.  
  
Shampoo could stand it no longer. That... that bossy, violent girl was going to kiss her husband! Having managed to escape the clutches of Cologne from their hiding place, she had pounced. And just in the nick of time, from what she could tell.  
  
"Silly Ranma! Why kiss that girl when Shampoo have too too inviting lips? Perhaps you is pretending she is Shampoo, Ranma's one true love? Well, husband no have to pretend any longer! Real Shampoo is here now!" She pouted her lips into what she figured was a sexy, come hither look, and leaned towards Ranma, pressing her chest against his. Her hands snaked around his neck, pulling his head closer.  
  
Ranma tensed up. He fully expected to feel the Mallet of Doom smashing down on his head at any minute. Trying to untangle himself from Shampoo, he kept finding his hands placed where he really didn't want them touching. Of course, Shampoo would then squirm ecstatically, yelling out things like "Oh! Ranma really do love Shampoo! Husband is so big man type! Shampoo loooovvvveee when Ranma touch her there..."  
  
Looking over at Akane, Ranma prepared the old speech from memory. The spiel ran through his head like a rerun of some old, bad tv show. *Akane! It's not my fault! Put the mallet away Akane! I didn't do nootttthhhiiiinnnngggg...* The last usually said as he soared off into the air. Before he could even open his mouth, he saw it was already too late. Akane's battle aura raged magnificently. "Aww man..."  
  
Akane planted her feet firmly on the ground, balled her hands into fists and glared. She was so angry she could only whisper. The night had been going so well, and now that... that... JERK! had to go and do this. She opened her mouth and quietly choked out a challenge.  
  
No reaction. However, if looks could kill, Akane would have been a murderer. She tried again. This time, she managed to get some more noise out. Enough that Shampoo and Ranma looked her way, momentarily interrupted from her attempts to kiss him and his attempts to avoid that happening.  
  
"What you want, Violent girl? Is too too rude to interrupt Shampoo and husband. Now go away." Shampoo turned back to her love, putting her palms on his cheeks, forcing his mouth into a pucker. "Akane see? Ranma want to kiss Shampoo!"  
  
"Get. Your. Paws. Off. My. Man." Akane growled out the words, this time loudly enough to be recognizable. "The only person that's gonna be kissing him is me. Ranma is MINE!"  
  
Ranma wondered if he should take offense at the proprietary tone in Akane's voice, but then decided to shut up and not say anything. Besides, it was a bit of a turn on. She sure was sexy when she was angry.  
  
Akane stalked towards the two. Grabbing Shampoo by the arm, she yanked her away. Shampoo, somewhat surprised by Akane's statements, stumbled. Ranma took the opportunity to slide out of her clutches and went to stand by Akane.  
  
"Akane! What are you doing? You know you can't take on Shampoo!"  
  
"Maybe not, Ranma, but I'm better than I was before. And besides, this is my fight. She didn't pick a fight with you - she picked it with me."  
  
Ranma was confused. "Shampoo didn't pick a fight... she tried to kiss me."  
  
Akane sighed. "You know, for someone that turns into a girl, you've got no clue sometimes, you know that? Let me sum it up. Girl is on date with guy. Other girl tries to kiss said guy. That equals the same thing as saying to the girl "Let's fight, bitch." And that reminds me..." Akane turned to Shampoo.  
  
"Let's fight, Bitch."  
  
"Aiyah! Shampoo is ready. Akane going to lose, no problem." The two girls adopted fighting stances, and stood, poised, ready to leap into action.  
  
"Whoa, hold on, Akane. No way I'm letting you take on Shampoo." Ranma blocked Akane's way to Shampoo. "Anyone's gonna fight her, it's me."  
  
"Why, Ranma? Like I said, this isn't your fight! It's mine. I know I might not win, but that's not the point. Please, if you care about me at all, you'll understand that I have to fight my own battles, and that I might even get hurt in some of them."  
  
Ranma groaned. "It's because I care about you that I haven't let you fight! I can't stand the thought of you getting hurt, you know. It tears me up inside just imagining it."  
  
Akane smiled at Ranma. "I know, Ranma. I realized that's why you wouldn't willingly let me fight just recently. But I'm never going to get better if you don't let me defend myself sometimes."   
  
"Damn, Akane. You just had to smile at me when you said that, didn't you? Okay, fine. Fight her. Get yourself hurt. I won't be there to pick up the pieces... Aww, who am I kidding? You start getting hurt too bad, and I'll be jumping in and no one is gonna stop me, got it?" Ranma was adamant.  
  
"Got it." Akane gave a happy grin to Ranma. That had gone better than she had expected. They stood there for a moment, just smiling at each other until a small cough broke them out of it.  
  
"Umm... Please to excuse Shampoo? We fight or no?" Shampoo tapped her foot impatiently.  
  
Ranma stepped aside, as Akane, all business again, retook her fighting stance.  
  
"I'm Akane Tendo, heir to the Tendo School of Anything Goes Martial Arts, and I challenge you, Shampoo!" She stated matter of factly.  
  
"Shampoo know who you are, stupid girl. Now fight!" Shampoo leapt forward. Not having her bonbori's handy, she had to settle for hand to hand combat. No matter though, she knew she'd get the better of Akane in no time, and then Ranma and her could walk off together forever.  
  
Akane dodged the foot aiming at her head, and got in a low jab to Shampoo's midsection. The two broke apart for their second approach. This time Akane took the initiative and raced towards Shampoo, preparing to strike another blow.  
  
Ranma watched the fight with trepidation, but also with appreciation. Akane had definitely improved her skills since he had last seen her in action. He didn't know if she was on the same level as Shampoo, after all, the girl was pretty good, but she'd give her a good run, that was for sure. He found himself subconsciously moving his body, as if he was trying to telegraph the right moves to Akane. Wincing whenever Shampoo would land a blow, his eyes never left the action.  
  
The two girls broke apart and backed up from each other, both breathing hard. Akane held a hand to her side, where Shampoo had landed a strong blow to her ribs. Shampoo hadn't faired so well either, walking with a bit of a limp after a good kick from Akane had met with her shin.  
  
"Akane can give up now, she no can win!" She sneered at the other girl, trying to over-confidence her opponent. She hadn't expected the fight to be, well, a fight.  
  
"What's the matter, Shampoo? Afraid that if I don't stop now, you just might lose?" Akane taunted right back. Blowing a bit of hair out of her face, she prepared to launch another attack. She was hurting, but there wasn't a chance she wasn't going to see this through to the end.  
  
The two rivals raced towards each other, hands and feet at the ready. Akane jumped up into the air at the last second, planning to land a kick at Shampoo's head, but Shampoo ducked in time, and she went right over her. Spinning around, Shampoo quickly shoved her palm into Akane's back, sending her sprawling to the ground. Rolling over, Akane quickly moved out of the way of Shampoo's foot descending towards her stomach. Trying to regain a standing position, she had to play the defensive, rolling about on the ground, dodging and blocking what she could, but Shampoo was starting to land too many blows.  
  
Ranma was almost in a state of panic. The only thing holding him back was the looks Akane would send him, telling him not yet, to wait. His nerves were completely on edge, and finally, as Akane let out a small shriek of pain, as Shampoo hit again on her sore ribs, he couldn't stop himself. He started forward, ready to put an end to the fight.  
  
"Son-In-Law, wait." A gravelly voice sounded from behind him. Turning around, he saw Cologne standing there.  
  
"Not a chance, old bag. Akane's getting hurt, and that's where my promise to stay out of it ended." He spat at the old woman, turning his back on her and advancing on the girls.  
  
"She has improved greatly. It is almost a shame that I could not have her as an Amazon daughter as well. But no matter. With you as an Amazon man, with Shampoo as your bride, our clan will be unbeatable." Cologne watched the girls struggling on the ground. "It seems it will be but another minute and the fight will be over. Perhaps you should just acknowledge Shampoo's claim on you now, and end it that way."  
  
Ranma turned back to Cologne and yelled, completely frustrated. "When are you gonna get it through your head? I am not going to marry Shampoo! I don't choose her! I CHOOSE AKANE!!!"  
  
Shampoo stopped in her tracks, standing with one foot on either side of Akane, lying on the ground. "R..Ranma... no... You not say that! You no mean that, is mistake! You choose Shampoo, say it!"  
  
Ranma started to shout the same thing again, this time to Shampoo, but Cologne held up her hand. "Is this true? You say to us now that you choose Akane?"  
  
"What are ya, deaf? That's what I said!"  
  
"Shampoo. The fight is over. We will go now." Cologne said calmly to her great grand daughter, not managing to mask the disappointment in her voice.  
  
"Great Grand Mother, no... He no mean it. Is big mistake!" Shampoo yelped.  
  
"Shampoo. You disappoint me, child. You know Amazon law as well as I do. When an outsider male, chosen as groom, openly chooses another, naming her by name, then any claim which we might have is forfeit."  
  
Akane looked up groggily from the ground, slowly pulling herself to a sitting position. She stared unbelievably at Cologne and a crying Shampoo. That was it? That was all that had had to be done? But when she thought about it, it made sense. Ranma had never stated his choice out loud before. He had often said he wouldn't marry Shampoo, but he had never said he chose someone else over her.  
  
Ranma too was in shock. He mentally kicked himself for not taking a closer look at Amazon laws before. Not that there were any texts readily available to the public though. And when he thought about it, he doubted that even if he had known about this particular loophole in the past, that he would have been able to say his choice then. Shaking, he walked over to Akane and held out his hand. After grasping it, he pulled her to her feet, and held her close. Looking at the two Amazons, he made sure his decision was clear. "That's right. I choose Akane. Not Ukyo, and not you Shampoo. Akane is the one I want."  
  
Cologne sighed. Walking up to Ranma, she spoke. "It is done. The Amazons hereby release you from any claim we had upon you as groom. May I be permitted to wish you both happiness in the future." Then, looking at Akane, she continued. "You do justice to Martial Arts, girl. The Amazons would have been proud to call you a sister." She bowed to the two of them.  
  
Akane managed to bow back. "Thank you, Cologne. That is one of the nicest compliments I have gotten." She watched as Cologne walked off.  
  
Ranma and Akane turned their attention to Shampoo. The purple haired girl stood there, her head hanging in defeat. Tears dripping from her eyes, her body shook in muffled sobs. She started to run after her Great Grand Mother, wanting to be out of this park, to be out of Japan. It was no consolation that she'd be able to go home with her honor intact - it would still be without Ranma. Darting past the two, she brushed against Akane, who was still wobbly on her feet.  
  
Akane teetered, trying to regain her balance. Ranma, still holding on to her, tried as well, but they each tried to recover by going a different direction. The only thing this accomplished was them landing smack into the fountain with a noisy splash.  
  
Sitting up in the water, Akane shook her wet hair out of her face and looked at the girl sitting across from her. "Well, I guess it's safe to say the date's over, huh?" Then she started to laugh, albeit a bit hysterically.  
  
Groaning, Ranma stood up, wringing the water from her pigtail. "Are you okay, Akane? You looked like you were taking a pretty bad beating there."  
  
"Oh Ranma. I'm okay. Nothing that a few days of relaxing won't take care of. I might see if I need my ribs taped though." She said as she winced.  
  
Helping Akane out of the fountain, Ranma paused before they started to walk home. "Akane? I wanted to say before I forgot. You fought well. I'm proud of you, and I'm sorry for doubting your abilities." He suddenly found himself wrapped in a huge hug.  
  
"Ranma, that's the nicest thing you've ever said to me!" Akane snuggled in closer and sighed in happiness.  
  
"Umm, I'm a girl right now - I don't know that you'd want to be hugging me like this." Ranma was embarrassed. She didn't mind the hug, but knew how Akane had felt in the past about things like this.  
  
"No. You're not a girl. You're Ranma, and I don't care what you look like on the outside. And I'll hug you if I damn well want!" Akane laughed.  
  
As they walked slowly home, taking it easy for Akane's sake, they didn't say anything. Reaching the front door, Akane put her hand on the doorknob, ready to open it. Stopping her by pulling her hand away, Ranma looked her in the face.  
  
"Did you mean it when you said I was yours?"  
  
The look in Akane's eyes gave Ranma her answer. She knew she could kiss her now if she wanted, but she pulled away instead. At the puzzled look in Akane's eyes, she smiled in re-assurance. "Our first kiss is gonna happen soon, you can bet on that, but I want it to be right - that is, I want to be a guy. Oh, I know you don't care, but there's still a big part of me that does."  
  
Akane smiled back at him. "I can wait if you can."  
  
They entered the house, their wet and in one of their cases, bruised appearance causing gasps of dismay from the parents and sister's waiting for them. Telling them they'd explain everything in the morning, that all they wanted now was a nice hot bath and a comfortable bed, they went upstairs.  
  
"You can have the bath first, Akane."  
  
"Thanks, Ranma. I won't take too long." Pausing at the furo door, Akane turned back to Ranma. "I had a good time tonight."  
  
"Even with everything that happened? I know it didn't end up being the perfect date..." Ranma stopped as Akane put her finger to her mouth.  
  
"I had a good time tonight." She repeated, as she entered the bathroom. Akane quickly washed herself down and slipped with a sigh into the hot water of the furo. She would have liked to relax longer, but knew Ranma was waiting. And besides, she was totally exhausted, and looking forward to climbing into her nice comfortable bed. Finishing up, she went into her bedroom. A knock on the door soon followed. Opening up the door, she found Kasumi on the other side.  
  
"Akane, this came for you while you were out." Kasumi handed her a brown paper package, smiled and left.  
  
"It came..." Akane sighed as she unwrapped the parcel. Sinking down on her bed, she started to sift through the contents.  
  
A little while later, Ranma, after washing up and changing back into a guy, stopped in front of Akane's bedroom. He could hear rustling and what sounded like crying coming from within. Worriedly he knocked on the door. "Akane? Are you okay? Did I do something wrong tonight? I thought you said you had a good time?" Getting no answer, but still hearing the soft cries, he continued. "I'm coming in, Akane." He opened the door and looked in.  
  
Akane sat on her bed, tears pouring steadily down her cheeks, clutching a handful of papers to her breast. She looked up at Ranma, her eyes shining brightly, wonderfully, through the sparkling tears. Still sobbing, she smiled. "Oh, Ranma..."  
  
Ranma's eyes darted to the papers. They opened wide as he recognized the handwriting. "My letters..."  
  
End Chapter Ten  
  
  
-One more chapter to go, folks! Yay! Next chapter is entitled "Letters to Akane" and yes, we will finally get to see what Ranma learned on his little six month journey of self discovery! I know my fight scene was probably lacking, but I'd never written one (you can't really count the fights in Ranma and Akane's Special Attack now, can you?). So, did the best I could. I didn't have Akane beat Shampoo, because although she's a good fighter, she really isn't in Shampoo's class. What did you think of my way of Ranma getting out of the Amazon husband thing? A cop-out? Or an okay idea? He really never made an open choice in the manga or the anime. Sure, he was doing the whole marriage thing at the end, but he never came out and said that he chose Akane, so I thought it worked. Read and Review! 


	11. Chapter Eleven

-It's finally here - the last chapter. I hope you all enjoy it.  
  
-Disclaimer: Rumiko Takahashi created Ranma 1/2. I didn't. But this storyline is all my own.  
  
  
Better Left Unspoken - Letters to Akane  
  
Akane sighed as she looked at the package that Kasumi had given her. After weeks of waiting and hoping, it had come. Unwrapping the brown paper, she pulled out a small stack of envelopes and rifled through them, opening them as she went along. Ranma's letters that he had written to her during the six months he had been away were soon piled in a little heap in front of her.  
  
"Well, I guess they couldn't track down all of them, but even this is better than nothing. Okay, first things first. Let's put these in order." She sorted them quickly by date. Then, taking a shuddering deep breath, she picked up the first in the stack and began to read. By some amazing piece of luck (A/N - or just because this would have been too hard to write otherwise...), the first letter seemed to be the first one Ranma had written to her.  
  
  
Akane,  
  
So, yeah, I figure by now you either hate my guts, or you get why I left. If it's the second, then you're better off than me. Cause I got no clue why I left. No wait, not true. Cause I'm an idiot. Yep, Akane, you were right. I'm an idiot, I'm a jerk. Because the best thing in my life tells me what I want to hear, and I turn and walk away with some cheesy line out of a B-movie plot.  
  
Your Dad's probably really pissed at me, huh? Aww, I know you won't be able to send me a reply to this letter, so don't know why I even bother asking questions. But like that kinda reasoning is going to stop me.  
  
Okay, here goes the explaining. I'm not gonna get tear marks all over this letter or nothing, or do something stupid like beg for your forgiveness, cause that's not me and you know it. Besides, you and I both know that we both made mistakes in how we did this whole thing. Yeah, you got the mallet out now, don't ya? Hehe - so, before you tear up this letter, take a deep breath, and hear me out, k?  
  
I got scared. I don't know why, and I probably won't ever know why. It was just - I don't know - things were going good after that whole mess of a wedding day, and we were getting along, and the horde wasn't bothering us. And the first thing that popped into my head was "Why ruin a good thing?". So then, I open my mouth and put my foot into it. I'm good at that, you've probably never noticed. Does sarcasm come across on paper?  
  
Anyway, that's all I'm going to say for right now. I need some time away from everything just to get things clear in my head. I know how I feel, but I just can't seem to say it. But it's a lot easier knowing you feel the same. I'll come back - I'm not sure when - but I will come back - to you. And then, maybe, I'll be able to say, or at least show, how I feel.  
  
Tell Pops and your family that I'm okay, and that I'll even try to write to them sometimes.  
  
Ranma  
  
  
Akane frowned slightly after reading the letter. Well, it didn't really explain much, but there were still other letters. She picked up the next one. It was written a month or so later.  
  
  
Akane,  
  
Hey, it's me again. Did some more training yesterday. Found a little dojo up in some really quiet hills. They've got some real interesting techniques. The guy that runs the dojo knows his stuff. He's going to show me a few things from his school - it's the school of Martial Arts meditation. Yesterday I actually managed to sit in one place and think of nothing for 3 minutes. And right now you're saying "But isn't that the usual, Ranma? Thinking of nothing?". Hee.  
  
But actually, it seems like I've been doing nothing other than thinking lately. Thinking of us, and our relationship - if you can even call it one. We both sort of jump the gun a lot. Saying things that we don't mean, hurting each other without really wanting to - that kind of thing. Sometimes I wonder if we would have been totally different if Pops and I had come to your house without the whole engaged bit. But then, maybe nothing would have changed. Who knows.  
  
So, here's the deal. I learn to work on keeping my mouth shut when I can't think of something nice to say, and you learn to control your temper. Sounds harsh I know, but yeah, Akane. You have a temper. Am I just saying that cause I know I'm out of your reach at the moment? Probably, but it's true. It's also true that I'm an outspoken jerk who says the worst possible things at the worst possible times. So we've each got our faults.  
  
I wish you could reply to these, so I know that you agree with me. But somehow, I think you do. From what happened before I left, I think you want to make this work out as much as I do.  
  
Been thinking of you lots - hope you've been thinking of me.  
  
Ranma  
  
  
Akane glared at a few points in the last letter - namely the part about her having a temper. Really! She so did not have a temper! Then, laughing at herself, she calmed down. After all, she had admitted to herself not that long ago that yes, she did have a temper. She read a few more of the letters. A lot of them were just short notes, letting her know what he had done that week, but others were longer.  
  
  
Akane,  
  
Hey. How's things going at home? Weird that I think of your house as home, but I do. I guess after having lived anywhere and everywhere for 10 years, settling down in one place was bound to make that happen. But I don't think that's quite it. It's home because... well, because of the people in it. Kasumi and Nabiki are like sisters to me, and your dad is cool too. Then there's you. And that I think is the big reason it's home to me. Because you're there, and where you are is where I want to be.  
  
Been thinking about heading back soon - I can't wait to see everyone again. How is the old gang anyway? Funny that I even kind of miss them. Hey, I said KIND OF! Hehe. Hope they haven't been bothering you too much while I've been gone. Or that no one's come to kidnap you or nothing. After all, I'm not there to rescue you. Just kidding!  
  
I've just been doing some aimless wandering - starting to feel a bit like Ryoga. Just stopping for the night under a tree, or a dojo if I'm lucky enough to find one in the area. I use the mediation techniques I learned a while ago every night. They really help to make the day's problems disappear.  
  
Hey, Akane? Am I immature? Cause at the last place I stayed for a while, the master there read my aura and said that I lacked the grace and wisdom for one of my years - whatever that means. His wife said it meant that I was immature, but I think she must have been mistaken. Oh, who am I kidding? I know I lack in certain areas. Especially dealing with other people my own age. All I know how to do is fight the guys, and not know how to act around the girls. Anyway, like I said, this guy told me that I needed to learn how to act my age. But he didn't train me. His wife did. Everyday for two weeks, we'd have a conversation. She'd pretend to be a teenage girl, and I'd be my normal self. Then, each time I did something stupid, we'd stop and discuss it. First day, I think I got about an average of 5 words out before getting stopped each time for a discussion.  
  
I think it helped though. Being told what I did wrong worked a lot better than other methods I can think of. I won't mention any, but I think you know what I'm talking about. Right, Little Miss Mallet? Hey, I hope you don't mind me teasing you like this - Mrs. Yokohami - that's the lady I trained with - said that my teasing is just my way of expressing my like for someone. Stupid way of expressing it, were her exact words, I think.  
  
I wish you could write back! I want to know what you're doing - what you're thinking - whether you think of me as much as I think of you. Or if you're taking this time apart to try to learn something about yourself too. Funny how I can write this stuff to you - but I'm red as a beet, trust me. Yeah, I've grown up a bit, but I think I'm still a lot of the same old Ranma you know.  
  
Miss you,  
  
Ranma  
  
  
Akane was smiling now. It was so funny that Ranma wrote exactly as he spoke - with poor grammar and all. She could almost see him writing the letters, trying to think of what words to use, maybe even looking over his shoulder for an impending thwack on the head when he wrote something she could take wrongly. Eagerly she reached for the next one in the rapidly diminishing stack.  
  
  
Akane,  
  
I miss you. I miss our fights, I miss walking to school with you and sneaking peeks at you when I knew you weren't looking. I miss how you nibble on your bottom lip when you're concentrating in class. I miss seeing how cute you are when you smile.  
  
This letter is probably going to be a weird one, so bear with me, okay? I'm just in a funky mood. I want to go home, but I know I'm not quite ready to come back to you, and face you, and say the things I want to say to you. So, I'm just going to try to get some of it across now on paper. I'll probably tear this up after writing it and you'll never get to see it, but who knows - maybe I'll throw it in an envelope and slam it into the nearest mailbox before I can think twice.  
  
I think about us a lot. About what I hope we can have when I get back. How we'll get the school back on its feet, with new students for you and I to train together. I want to be a part of your life, your family's life, to help make it better.  
  
I remember how upset you were after I kissed you while I was thinking I was a cat. I wish it hadn't happened like that - I'd like to at least remember it - kissing the girl who I think about kissing all the time. I do, you know. Every time you'd smile at me, I would want to reach out and kiss you. But I didn't, did I? But when I get back, you'd better have those lips ready, Akane. Just wanted to let you know that. I'm going to kiss you until my knees buckle. Which probably won't take long. And yes, I know that I wrote "my". Cause you make me tremble just thinking about it.  
  
I've been putting a lot of thought into our future. I want a little girl who looks just like you - tomboy and all. I like you as a tomboy - ready to try anything and everything, not afraid to stand up to a fight. No - I want a lot of little girls, who all take after their mom. I'd probably spoil them rotten though. I know you'd be a good parent - I've seen the way you've been around people younger than you - you're so much more patient with them then I am. But you'd help me be a good dad, I know.  
  
Akane - I want to marry you. I want to hold you at night, in our room, knowing that my heart is beating next to yours. I want to look at you while you're sleeping. I want to fall asleep next to you, and wake up next to you everyday. Sometimes at night, I dream about you. Most of the time. I dream about coming home, and having you open the door and reaching out to touch you to make sure that I'm really there, and that you're really you. But right now it's just a dream.  
  
I wonder if you still feel the same. Maybe I'm writing this, and you're reading it and laughing. But I can't think like that. I know how you feel, and I hope you now know how I feel. Wouldn't it be nice if we both were on the same track at the same time for once?  
  
I'm going to mail this. As soon as I write my name, I'm throwing it into this envelope sitting beside me and running to the post office. I hope.  
  
I will come home soon. To you.  
  
Ranma  
  
  
Akane hugged this letter to her with a happy sigh. All kinds of emotions had run through her head while reading it. But above all was joy. Ranma maybe couldn't say or even write those three little words, but she could read between the lines. She was pretty sure he still felt the same. Looking at the letters left to read, she realized, somewhat disappointed, that there was only two left.  
  
  
Akane,  
  
Had an interesting day today. Got splashed with cold water by accident for the first time in quite a while. And of course, it had to be while I was staying at a monastery. Figures. Ever ran out of a monastery topless, while a bunch of monks are trying to cover their eyes, yet not at the same time? Didn't think so. It's not fun.  
  
I think I've finally come to terms with my curse. I don't know if I'll ever get my hands on another batch of "Spring of drowned man" water again. If I do, I know I'll use it, but if I don't, my life won't be over. Even though I look like a girl, I know I'm not, and I'm not worried anymore that if I change too many times I'll start being one for real.   
  
Do you mind that I have this curse? I know you've said you don't like it, but then there were times that it really didn't seem to bother you all that much. Maybe you were being like me and just trying to find things wrong with our situation? Deep thoughts, I know.  
  
I don't think this letter is going to be long - it's raining out, and pretty cold. I'm in a cave at the moment, but I've got to go collect some wood for a fire in a bit. I'm eating okay, I know pretty much what to look for when I'm on my own, plus there's not a lack of people where I've been. I sometimes do odd jobs for a meal. Little of this, little of that.  
  
I'm getting tired of wandering and thinking about my life. I've been gone over 5 months now. I want to get back to Nerima and get on with my life.  
  
The wind's picking up - I'm gonna go get that wood now. I'll write again soon.  
  
Yours,  
  
Ranma  
  
  
Her heart beating fast, and her palms suddenly sweaty, Akane slowly reached down and picked up the last letter. It wasn't very long, more of a note, but it was the last one, and she hated to see them come to an end.  
  
  
Akane,  
  
I'm on my way home! By the time you get this, I should only be a day or so behind it. Will you be there when I get to the door? I hope so. I hope your face is the first thing I see when I walk in.  
  
I want to ask you to do something for me. If you still feel the same as you did 6 months ago, wear a flower in your hair every day from the time you get this letter. That way, I'll know when I get there. So that if you don't, I don't embarrass you. Will you do that? Will you be wearing a blossom the next time I see you? I'm dreaming that you do.   
  
I hope my letters have helped cover the distance that there is between us while I've been gone. It's helped me - when I'm writing to you, I look up in the sky, and I see your face, and it's like you're there, and I'm not writing it, I'm saying it - to you. And you're smiling, and all is right with the world.  
  
I'm coming home - to you, I hope. Akane - I don't ever want to be away from you for so long again.  
  
I love you.  
  
Ranma  
  
  
Akane burst into tears. Huge, gasping sobs threw themselves past her lips. She couldn't understand it - she was so happy reading that last sentence, why was she crying? But she couldn't stop either. Reaching down, she held on to the letters almost frantically, as if she was trying to absorb the words within them into her skin.  
  
She heard a knock on the door, but couldn't manage to get any words out over her tears. A muffled voice came through, but she couldn't make it out. Trying to collect herself, she swiped madly at her face, still not able to stop the tears of happiness. She saw her door opening slowly, and then there he was, peeking carefully around it.  
  
She managed to choke out a coherent sentence, seeing the look of worry on his face.   
  
"Oh, Ranma..." she smiled through her sobs.  
  
Ranma's eyes darted to the papers. They opened wide as he recognized the handwriting. "My letters..."   
  
Akane gulped down another sob and nodded. She was a mess! Reaching for a box of tissues, she stumbled off her bed. Ranma was there in an instant to keep her from falling. Silently he passed her the box, and knelt in front of her as she sat back down on the bed, slowly collecting herself.  
  
"How... I mean, when... but I thought the letters were lost!?" Ranma sputtered out.  
  
Akane finally was calm enough to speak. "You had mentioned a few of the areas that you had been to, so I called the postal offices and talked to the lost letters department. They said they'd do what they could, but it had been a while, and I had given up on them finding anything..."  
  
Ranma suddenly clued in. "That's who you were waiting for! The mailman!" He was happy this last bit of mystery had been cleared up for him. Looking at the letters now strewn across the bed, he glanced back at Akane. "They couldn't find them all, I take it?"  
  
Akane shook her head.  
  
"And you've read them?" Ranma asked nervously.  
  
Akane nodded her head.  
  
Ranma cleared his throat. "Akane... There's just so much I should say, I don't know where to begin - all those things you read, I wanted to tell you about, but..."  
  
Akane suddenly interrupted. "Ranma... some things are better left unspoken" She whispered with a glint of humor in her eyes at using the same words he had so long before.  
  
He looked at her puzzled.  
  
She reached over to her bedside table and grabbed a flower out of a little bouquet vase that was sitting there. Quickly, she thrust it into her hair. Ranma's eyes widened as he realized what she had done.  
  
"In other words, shut up and kiss me." She murmured as she closed her eyes and leaned towards him, reaching her arms around his neck, and entwining her fingers in his hair.  
  
He was more than happy to oblige.  
  
The End.  
  
  
-It's done! Wow - writing this took a lot of work to make it right. And you know how it got started in the first place? One of my friends bet me that I couldn't write something other than comedy. But truthfully, I have to say, I like writing humor better. Not that I didn't enjoy doing this story - after all, I've had so many supporters of this fic, that there's no way I wouldn't enjoy it. So, what's next from me? You'll have to wait and see! I hope you've all enjoyed Better Left Unspoken - Thank you to everyone who reviewed - both the good and the bad, and special thanks to all that reviewed more than once. Your comments and suggestions helped create this story just as much as me typing it. Read and review! 


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